| Summary: | This study offers an innovative view of the petrogenetic processes responsible for the magmas erupted in the Western Antarctic Rift System (WARS) by studying the chemical composition and the volatiles content of basic lavas and olivine-hosted melt inclusions (MI). Lavas come from three localities: Shield Nunatak (Mt. Melbourne), Eldridge Bluff and Handler Ridge. They are olivine-phyric basanites (42.41-44.80 SiO2 wt%; 3.11-6.19 Na2O+K2O wt%) and basalts (44.91-48.73 SiO2 wt%; 2.81-4.55 Na2O+K2O wt%) with minor clinopyroxene and plagioclase. Samples from Handler Ridge clearly differ by having the highest TiO2 (3.55-3.65 wt%), Rb, Ba, Nb, La, Zr despite their more primitive features (60.83-44.87 Mg#, MgO/(MgO+FeO) %mol). Olivine-hosted melt inclusions (MI) were analyzed for major element and volatiles (H2O. CO2, S, F, and Cl) after HT (1300°C) and HP (6 kbar) homogenization. Despite a larger variability, MI are compositionally comparable to the host lavas and are characterized by two distinct trends (high-Fe-Ti-K and low-Fe-Ti-K). The H2O content in MI ranges from 0.70 wt% to 2.64 wt% and CO2 from 25 ppm to 341 ppm (H2O/CO2~ 1). At comparable H2O contents few samples show an higher CO2 values (1322 ppm to 3905 ppm) with a H2O/CO2 down to 0.8. F and Cl content varies from 1386 ppm to 10 ppm and from 1336 ppm to 38 ppm respectively. Concentration of volatiles show a good correlation with alkalies, especially with K2O; Handler Ridge presents the highest total value of F and Cl (2675 ppm). Chondrite-normalized trace elements concentration in MI show a intraplate pattern with negative anomalies in Rb, K, Ti. Acconrdingly to the lava contents, MI from Handler Ridge have a significant higher concetration in Rb (12-45 ppm), Sr (700-834 ppm), Ba (433-554) and Nb (48.8-83.4 ppm) with respect to the other localities at comparable Mg#. Mantle melting mass balance calculations simulate the observed H2O, CO2 and Cl concentration by melting a spinel lhezolite from 3 to 7 % of melting (F) with a 5% of modal amphibole with the ...
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