Pargasites (F/(F + Cl + OH) ratio (X-F) of up to 0.48) from Tonagh Island in Enderby Land, East Antarctica are closely associated with typical high-grade minerals such as orthopyroxene in quartzo-feldspathic, mafic, and ultramafic granulites, and is regarded as a stable mineral at the peak metamorphic conditions (>1100 degreesC) calculated for the ultrahigh-temperature Archean Napier Complex. Although experimental investigations have suggested that the upper thermal stability limit of F-free pargasite is below 1050 degreesC, thermodynamic calculations for the present pargasite +quartz assemblage indicate that the thermal stability limit of pargasite with X-F = 0.5 is about 150 degreesC higher than that of the hydroxyl end member. Fluorine substitution in the pargasite therefore allowed the mineral to survive the ultrahigh-temperature metamorphism at Tonagh Island.
A positive correlation between the F content of pargasite and coexisting biotite indicates that the minerals approach chemical equilibrium in terms of F-OH distribution. Although the fluorine composition of pargasites (X-F=0.12-0.48) and bulk rock (300-2500 ppm) varies widely, the log(f(H2O)/F-HF) values calculated for these rocks are relatively constant (3.2-3.7), which is consistent with infiltration of an F-bearing fluid during prograde metamorphism. The infiltration of such a fluid is also supported by the higher bulk F content of most of the analyzed samples compared to those of continental and oceanic basaltic rocks, that is, F had been added from an external source. A positive correlation between bulk MgO and F content suggests that F may have been selectively trapped in high-X-Mg pargasite in MgO-rich rocks. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.