Early Cretaceous intraplate seamounts from Guanajuato, central Mexico: geochemical and mineralogical data

Luis Enrique Ortiz-Hernández Centro de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Tierra, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Hidalgo, Carretera Pachuca -Tulancingo Km. 4.5, C.P. 42184, Pachuca, Hgo. México
Otilio Arturo Acevedo-Sandoval Centro de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Tierra, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Hidalgo, Carretera Pachuca -Tulancingo Km. 4.5, C.P. 42184, Pachuca, Hgo. México.
Kinardo Flores-Castro Centro de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Tierra, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Hidalgo, Carretera Pachuca -Tulancingo Km. 4.5, C.P. 42184, Pachuca, Hgo. México.

Keywords: Pillow lavas, seamounts, hot-spot, Early Cretaceous, Guanajuato, Mexico.

Abstract

An Early Cretaceous submarine volcanic and volcaniclastic sequence is found in the north- western part of the Sierra de Guanajuato, in central Mexico. This sequence is formed by mildly alkaline basaltic pillow lavas interbedded with massive lava flows, pillow breccias, hyaloclastites, lapilli tuffs, and cognate feeder dikes capped by ribbon cherts and other pelagic flyschlike sediments.

Mineralogically, the pillow lavas and cognate diabasic dikes are composed of titaniferous salite/augite, albite, ilmenite, titanite, prehnite, and pumpellyite. Geochemically, they are characterized by high contents of TiO₂, Zr, Nb, and P₂O₅, high Ti/V ratios (49-61), and slightly enriched LREE-patterns (2 < La_N/Yb_N< 4). These rocks are interpreted as remnants of shallow water deposits of intra-plate seamounts formed as a result of hot-spot volcanism.

Published

2018-06-08

Issue

Vol 20 No 1 (2003)

Section

Regular Papers

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