Titanium- and water-rich metamorphic olivine in high-pressure serpentinites from the Voltri Massif (Ligurian Alps, Italy): evidence for deep subduction of high-field strength and fluid-mobile elements

Titanium- and water-rich metamorphic olivine (Fo 86–88) is reported from partially dehydrated serpentinites from the Voltri complex, Ligurian Alps. The rocks are composed of mostly antigorite and olivine in addition to magnetite, chlorite, clinopyroxene and Ti-clinohumite. In situ secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) data show that metamorphic olivine has very high and strongly correlated H2O (up to 0.7 wt%) and TiO2 contents (up to 0.85 wt%). Ti-rich olivine shows colourless to yellow pleochroism. Olivine associated with Ti-clinohumite contains low Ti, suggesting that Ti-rich olivine is not the breakdown product of Ti-clinohumite. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) absorption spectra show peaks of serpentine, Ti-clinohumite and OH-related Si vacancies. Combining FTIR and SIMS data, we suggest the presence of clustered planar defects or nanoscale exsolutions of Ti-clinohumite in olivine. These defects or exsolutions contain more H2O (x ~ 0.1 in the formula 4Mg2SiO4·(1−x)Mg(OH,F)2·xTiO2) than Ti-clinohumite in the sample matrix (x = 0.34–0.46). In addition to TiO2 and H2O, secondary olivine contains significant Li (2–60 ppm), B (10–20 ppm), F (10–130 ppm) and Zr (0.9–2.1 ppm). It is enriched in 11B (δ11B = +17 to +23 ‰). Our data indicate that secondary olivine may play a significant role in transporting water, high-field strength and fluid-mobile elements into the deeper mantle as well as introduce significant B isotope anomalies. Release of hydrogen from H2O-rich olivine subducted into the deep mantle may result in strongly reduced mantle domains.