Petrology and geochemistry of the Neoproterozoic Siroua granitoids (central Anti-Atlas, Morocco): evolution from subduction-related to within-plate magmatism
-
Published:January 01, 2008
-
CiteCitation
Ahmed Touil, Ahmid Hafid, Jacques Moutte, Abdelmajid El Boukhari, 2008. "Petrology and geochemistry of the Neoproterozoic Siroua granitoids (central Anti-Atlas, Morocco): evolution from subduction-related to within-plate magmatism", The Boundaries of the West African Craton, Nasser Ennih, Jean-Paul Liégeois
Download citation file:
- Share
-
Tools
Abstract
The Siroua massif includes many plutons of Neoproterozoic age. The mineralogical and geochemical character of the plutons allows us to describe an evolution of the magmatism, in space and time, from a subduction-related type in the northern part, to a within-plate subalkaline type in the southern part. The first magmatic activity coeval with the closing of the Khzama oceanic basin in the north is little evolved and of oceanic type (dominantly gabbros and basalts). It is followed by a low potassic calc-alkaline magmatism (gabbro–diorites, tonalites and trondhjemites of Nebdas pluton) and by a voluminous highly potassic calcalkaline magmatism (Askaoun...
Figures & Tables
Contents
The Boundaries of the West African Craton

The boundaries of rigid cratons can be affected by subsequent orogenic events, leading to ‘metacratonic’ characteristics not often properly recognized and still poorly understood. Major lithospheric thickening is absent and early events such as ophiolites are preserved; however, metacratonic boundaries are affected by major shear zones, abundant magmatism and mineralizations, and local high-pressure metamorphism.
West Africa, marked by the large Eburnian (c. 2 Ga) West African craton, the absence of Mesoproterozoic events, the major Pan-African (0.9–0.55 Ga) mobile belts that generated the Peri-Gondawanan terranes, and the weaker but enlightening Variscan and Alpine orogenies, is an excellent place for tackling this promising concept of metacratonization.
The papers in this book consider most of the West African craton boundaries, from the reworking of the Palaeoproterozoic terranes, through the Pan-African encircling terranes, the late Neoproterozoic-early Palaeozoic extension period and the Peri-Gondwanan terranes, the Variscan imprint to the current situation.