Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier Masson
Résumé : International audience
The Chaînons Béarnais ranges (North-Pyrenean Zone, west-central Pyrenees) display a fold-and-thrust structure involving the Mesozoic sedimentary cover, decoupled from its substratum at the Keuper evaporites level and associated with a few peridotite bodies and scarce Palaeozoic basement lenses. In the western part of the Chaînons Béarnais, the newly described recumbent fold of the Saraillé massif comprises a peridotite body and several lenses of Palaeozoic basement wrapped by the Triassic to Aptian sedimentary cover. This structure represents a remnant of the distal portion of the Pyrenean paleo-rifted margin where mantle rocks have been exhumed during Albian–Cenomanian times. In this paper, we present the first detailed mapping and microstructural analysis of the Saraillé massif, providing new geological basis for reconstructing the evolution of this part of the paleo-margin. Our mapping (i) shows that the pre-rift Mesozoic cover forms a recumbent fold cored by mantle and crustal rocks and (ii) confirms that the prerift cover was detached from its bedrock along a layer of Triassic evaporites and slid onto the exhumed mantle rocks. Sliding of the prerift cover was associated with extreme crustal thinning and mantle exhumation along a major detachment fault, together with intense metasomatism affecting both the continental basement and the sedimentary cover. We show for the first time (1) that the Mesozoic pre-rift sediments experienced syn-metamorphic ductile thinning during mantle exhumation, and (2) that during its extreme attenuation, the continental basement was reduced to tectonic lenses some ten meters thick by ductile shearing.
ISSN: 1631-0713

insu-01265777
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01265777
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01265777/document
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01265777/file/corre-CRGeosc-2016.pdf
DOI : 10.1016/j.crte.2015.11.007

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
Orogenic lherzolites exhibit a specific (although reproducible) platinum-group element signature characterized by slight positive deviations of Pd/Ir, Rh/Ir and Ru/Ir ratios from the canonical chondritic model. Such a signature was alternatively considered to be a compositional feature of the primitive upper mantle or resulting from sulfide melt addition by refertilisation reactions in the continental lithosphere. To shed additional light on this conundrum, the distribution of PGE in FON B 93, an unserpentinized, fertile (3.24% Al2O3) orogenic lherzolite (French Pyrenees) used as in-house standard by our group, has been studied to different scales, from the bulk rock to trace minerals. In addition to new ICPMS analyses after separation into Nis and Te coprecipitation, its whole-rock PGE concentrations were redetermined by three different laboratories using very precise ID-ICP-MS methods after digestion of the sample in Carius tube at T=250 degrees C and 320 degrees C or in high-pressure asher (HPA-S). The four methods produce reproducible Ru, Rh and Pd contents (7.1 +/- 0.18 ppb; 1.43 +/- 0.05 ppb; 7.1 +/- 0.30 ppb) whereas the non-ID NiS-fire assay method underestimates the Os and Ir concentrations by c.a. 10 and 15% compared to ID-ICP-MS analyses (4.40 +/- 0.07 and 4.00 +/- 0.17 ppb, respectively). Platinum was the most difficult to analyse. If performed on powder aliquots smaller than 3 g, the ID-ICP-MS analyses generate strong nugget effects while the non-ID NiS-fire assay method yields statistically lower (but highly reproducible) Pt concentrations (6.92 +/- 0.26 ppb). These features reflect the strong partitioning of Pt into trace phases that SEM and laser ablation-ICP-MS analyses on thin sections identify as both high-temperature Pt-Ir-Os alloys and Pt-(Pd) tellurides of likely subsolidus origin; ten to fifteen grains ranging in maximum dimension from a few micrometres to a few hundreds of nanometers, were identified by standard polished thin section. LA-ICP-MS data on base metal sulfides (25 grains analysed), coupled with the whole-rock S concentration (277 +/- 10 ppm) and modal composition of the BMS (90% pentlandite+accessory pyrite and secondary pyrrhotite + 10% chalcopyrite) allowed the contribution of the BMS phase to the PGE budget of FON B 93 to be estimated. Except Pt that exhibits a 95% deficit in the BMS phase, the PGE concentrations measured by ID-ICP-MS can be balanced by BMS while Al-spinel is a negligible contributor, accounting for less than 0.5% of the Ru budget. The occurrence of Pt in trace phases may bias the whole-rock Pt concentrations because 1) mechanical collection of Pt-rich trace phases remains problematic with the Nis button, and 2) Pt-Ir-Os alloys may be prone to digestion problems in conventional Carius tube procedures. Since they could be stable at mantle depth, such refractory alloys that contain Os and Ir may also have enhanced the heavy PGEs/light PGEs fractionation. Our observations likely pertain to orogenic lherzolites as a whole because BMS assemblages in these mantle rocks record evolution at low sulfur fugacity, which prevents Pt-Ir-Os alloy from entering the Mss in the mantle; moreover, at subsolidus temperature, pentlandite, the major BMS, cannot accommodate 0 valence state Pt.
ISSN: 0009-2541

hal-00411486
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00411486
DOI : 10.1016/j.chemgeo.2007.06.030

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD American Geophysical Union
Résumé : International audience
We investigate upper mantle anisotropy beneath the Pyrenean range along three N-S profiles across the mountain belt. The results of a first profile that operated in 1993 in the central part of the belt have been presented elsewhere. We present the results of two other profiles that ran in 1995-1996 and 1996-1997 in the eastern and western part of the belt, respectively and propose an interpretation of the whole results. Teleseismic shear waves (SKS, SKKS, and PKS) are used to determine splitting parameters: the fast polarization direction φ and the delay time δt. Teleseismic shear wave splitting in the eastern Pyrenees displays homogeneous φ values trending N100°E and δt values in the range 1.1 to 1.5 s. A station located in the southern Massif Central, 100 km north of the range, is characterized by different splitting parameters (φ = N70°E, δt = 0.7 s). In the western part of the belt, anisotropy parameters are similar across the whole belt (φ = N110°E and δt = 1.3 to 1.5 s). Most of the measured delay times, including those obtained in the central part of the range, are above the global average of the SKS splitting (around 1 s). At the belt scale, φ is generally poorly correlated with recent estimations of the absolute plate motion, which predicts a fast direction ranging between N50°E and N80°E. Instead, the orientation of φ (N100°E) is parallel to the trend of the Pyrenean belt but also to Hercynian preexisting structures. This parallelism supports an anisotropy primarily related to frozen or active lithospheric structures. We show that a signature related to the Pyrenean orogeny is likely for the stations located in the internal domains of the belt. By contrast, the anisotropy measured at the stations located on the external parts of the belt could reflect a pre-Pyrenean (Hercynian) deformation. We suggest that a late Hercynian strike-slip deformation is responsible for this frozen upper mantle anisotropy and that the Pyrenean tectonic fabric developped parallel to this preexisting fabric. Finally, no particularly strong splitting is related to the North Pyrenean Fault, commonly believed to represent the plate boundary between Iberia and Eurasia.
ISSN: 2169-9313

hal-01388841
http://hal.univ-reunion.fr/hal-01388841
http://hal.univ-reunion.fr/hal-01388841/document
http://hal.univ-reunion.fr/hal-01388841/file/Barruol_Aniso_Pyr_JGR1998.pdf
DOI : 10.1029/98JB02790

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Wiley-Blackwell
Résumé : International audience
In the Pyrenees, the lherzolites nowhere occur as continuous units. Rather, they always outcrop as restricted bodies, never more than 3 km wide, scattered across Mesozoic sedimentary units along the North Pyrenean Fault. We report the results of a detailed analysis of the geological setting of the Lherz massif (central Pyrenees), the type-locality of lherzolites and one of the most studied occurrences of mantle rocks worldwide. The Lherz body is only 1.5 km long and belongs to a series of ultramafic bodies of restricted size (a few metres to some hundreds of metres), occurring within sedimentary formations composed mostly of carbonate breccias originating from the reworking of Mesozoic platform limestones and dolomites. The clastic formations also include numerous layers of polymictic breccias reworking lherzolitic clasts. These layers are found far from any lherzolitic body, implying that lherzolitic clasts cannot derive from the in situ fragmentation of an ultramafic body alone, but might also have been transported far away from their sources by sedimentary processes. A detailed analysis of the contacts between the Lherz ultramafic body and the surrounding limestones confirms that there is no fault contact and that sediments composed of ultramafic material have been emplaced into fissures within the brecciated carapace of the peridotites. These observations bear important constraints for the mode of emplacement of the lherzolite bodies. We infer that mantle exhumation may have occurred during Albian strike-slip deformation linked to the rotation of Iberia along the proto-North Pyrenean Fault.
ISSN: 0954-4879

hal-00412602
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00412602

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : National audience
Crustal-scale models for the Pyrenees based on ECORS reflection profileshave around 20 years now. In recent years, new understandingswere gained on the reconstruction to the preorogenic times, namelya scenario of extreme crustal attenuation and mantle exhumation ; inturn, this has implications on the interpretation of the present-day structure,as new models for the chain must consider feedbacks between themid-Cretaceous hyperextension and the Pyrenean inversion. On the WcentralPyrenean traverse, the southern part comprises 3 S-vergent basementthrust units, the Lakora, Gavarnie and Guarga units, flanked by thedetached cover of the Jaca piggyback basin and the Ebro basin, wherethe Mesozoic is thin and Late Cretaceous-Tertiary synorogenic carbonateand detrital sequences record a southward depocenter migration.To the N, the Chaînons Béarnais belt (CB) is a system of Jurassic to LowerCretaceous carbonate anticline ridges separated by synclines withthick Albian-Cenomanian flysch, covered to the north by Upper Cretaceousflysch sequences. The CB is thrust southwards together with theLakora thrust unit and northwards onto the Aquitaine basin. CB foldinglargely results from the rising and squeezing of diapirs initiated duringthe Jurassic-Early Cretaceous extension. Pieces of crust and mantle liftedin the diapirs attest that the CB derive from a Cretaceous domainof hyperextended continental crust and exhumed mantle. Moho reflectionsin the ECORS-Arzaq profile constrain the present deep structure.Restoration leads to a Mesozoic cover detachment over the N-Iberianand S-European margins. Inversion began by subduction of the exhumedmantle and folding and pop-up thrusting of the CB cover onto themargins. From the mid-late Eocene onwards, continental collision wasaccommodated by wedging and thrust stacking in the Iberian crust, involvingthe piggyback formation of S-vergent basement thrusts in theupper crust, and the northward subduction of the lower crust.
24 ème Réunion des sciences de la Terre 2014
Pau, France

insu-01080831
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01080831

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Springer Verlag
Résumé : International audience
During the development of the Variscan orogeny, large amounts of granitic melt were produced, giving rise to the intrusion of granitoids at different structural levels. Despite numerous studies, ages available from previous work on the Cevennes granites remain largely imprecise. In order to better constrain the age and emplacement mode of these granites, we have combined U-Pb dating on monazites and zircons and Ar-40/Ar-39 dating on biotites with petrological observations, major element chemical analysis and SEM zircon imaging on five samples from the Aigoual-St Guiral-Liron and Mont Lozere granitic massifs. The results revealed that granitic intrusions and cooling in Southern Cevennes occurred in a short time span at similar to 306 Ma after the main episode of regional metamorphism. Petrological and chemical data suggest that they result from a mixing between mantle-derived basic magmas (lamprophyres) and lower crust acid magmas. At a regional scale the production of these melts occurred at the end of crustal thickening induced by nappe stacking, at the same time as the late anatectic events recorded further north in the Velay dome and the granulite facies metamorphism recorded in metasedimentary granulite enclaves brought up by Tertiary volcanoes of the Velay area (Bournac).
ISSN: 1437-3254

hal-00412183
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00412183
DOI : 10.1007/s00531-007-0187-x

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : International audience
De nombreux pieds de marges continentales passives sont caractériséspar la présence de manteau exhumé (Galice, Angola, Scandinavie, MerRouge, Mer Tyrrhénienne, Australie, ...). Dans le cas des marges pyrénéennes,le manteau est exhumé en contexte extensif suite à l’amincissementcrustal extrême et mis en contact avec les sédiments sus-jacentsde la couverture pré-rift. Les chaînons Béarnais (Pyrénées Occidentales)sont les restes de cette couverture sédimentaire Mésozoïque associée àdes pointements de socle Paléozoïque et de manteau. Le massif du Saraillé(anticlinal de Sarrance) où sont rassemblées toutes ces lithologiesest un endroit idéal pour l’étude de la genèse des marges à manteau exhumé.Ce massif a fait l’objet d’une étude détaillée : cartographie, structure,évolution métamorphique, géochimie isotopique. La cartographiea révélé que la structure est une tête anticlinale couchée affectant l’ensemblede la couverture Mésozoïque pré-rift et dont le coeur est constituéde lentilles de socle et de manteau. Nous nous sommes particulièrementintéressés au contact entre la couverture Mésozoïque, dont labase est métamorphique et le socle. Un intense métasomatisme précoce,syn-extension est révélé par la présence de lentilles pluri-métriques detalc et chloritites, ainsi que par le développement de filonets d’albitites.Les analyses d’isotopes stables (18O, 13C) réalisées dans la couverturesédimentaire montrent l’importance des circulations de fluides métamorphiquesdurant l’exhumation du manteau et font du massif du Sarailléune référence pour les systèmes d’interactions fluide/roche au pieddes marges continentales distales. Nos analyses couplées aux observationsde terrain permettent de compléter les modèles d’amincissementcrustal extrême et de remontée du manteau. Nous montrons donc quela déformation ductile de la croûte continentale le long d’un grand détachement,s’accompagne de boudinage et se résout par l’individualisationde minces écailles de socle réparties sur le manteau exhumé.
24 ème Réunion des sciences de la Terre 2014
Pau, France

insu-01080825
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01080825

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
In orogenic systems, thrust faults play a major role in stacking different tectonic units and may act as conduits for the expulsion of large amounts of fluid of different origins (metamorphic, diagenetic, meteoric). This study focuses on the Monte Perdido thrust unit emplaced in the Paleogene Jaca thrust-sheet-top basin, in the SW-central Pyrenees. We aim to decipher the mechanisms and P-T conditions of deformation in fault zones and characterize the related fluid involvement, through combined microstructural, geochemical and microthermometry analyses. Two thrust faults cutting platform limestones, marls and siliciclastic turbidites of the lower part of the basin-fill (Paleocene-lower Eocene) have been studied. The fault zones are characterized by metre-thick shear zones with highly deformed, foliated clay-rich sediments. Foliation is underlined by preferentially oriented phyllosilicates. Several generations of shear and extension calcite, quartz and chlorite-bearing veins attest to fluid-rock interactions during a multi-stage deformation. Microstructural observations and stable isotope analyses on calcite from veins and host sediments suggest that deformation was aseismic and dominated by diffusive mass transfer from pressure solution sites along cleavage and stylolites to the precipitation sites in veins, with mineralizing fluids in equilibrium with the host sediments. Our results suggest an essentially closed hydrologic system, and imply the absence of significant fluid flow along the studied fault zones. Microthermometric study on fluid inclusions present in calcite and quartz veins, and calcite-quartz oxygen isotopic fractionation determined for the first generation shear veins, allow a geothermal gradient of 34 degrees C/km to be estimated. Analytical results demonstrate an evolution of the fault zones in three stages. The first stage was related to the emplacement of the Monte Perdido thrust unit during the middle Eocene at a temperature of similar to 208 degrees C and a burial depth of similar to 5.7 km. The second stage corresponds to a fault reactivation at a temperature of similar to 240 degrees C and a burial depth of similar to 6.5 km. The latter deformation may have been related to folding of the Monte Perdido thrust unit during the emplacement of the underlying Gavarnie thrust unit during the late Eocene-early Oligocene, with deeper burial resulting from aggradation of the thrust-sheet-top basin-fill. The last event corresponds to the formation of a dilatant vein system likely related to the exhumation of the massif.
ISSN: 0191-8141

hal-00644828
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00644828
DOI : 10.1016/j.jsg.2011.06.006

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Universites de L'ouest
Résumé : International audience
Lors du dernier contrat de plan Etat-Région, le Conseil régional de Midi-Pyrénées a opté pour une procédure originale avec la mise en place des contrats de développement reposant sur une nouvelle dimension territoriale: le "terroir".L'aménagement actuel de l'espace régional s'organise autour de trois démarches complémentaires donnant lieu à des contrats spécifiques en fonction des types de territoires. Le premier voler concerne la métropole toulousaine qui fait l'object d'une contractualisation spécifique. Viennent ensuite les contrats d'agglomération qui concernent les villes moyennes de la région, c'est-à-dire les préfectures des différents départements et quelques villes secondaires. Enfin, pour soutenir l'aménagement des campagnes et le développement de ces territoires, la Région met en place ces fameux contrats de terroirs.
ISSN: 0029-182X

hal-01406645
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01406645
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01406645/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01406645/file/1999%20Des%20contrats%20de%20terroirs%20pour%20les%20Pays%20de%20la%20Gascogne%20gersoise.pdf

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
The N-S Languedoc volcanic province between the French Massif Central and the Mediterranean Sea is characterized by sporadic scattered low volume (similar to 2 km(3)) and geochemically homogeneous alkali basaltic activity spanning from 161 to 05 Ma The existence of magmatic activity of such a long duration within such a small area (similar to 140 km long and similar to 60 km wide) in spite of the extensive shift to the East of the European plate (about 2500 km during the last 160 Ma) is problematic Trace-element abundances in lavas suggest low degrees of melting (1-5%) in the spinet-garnet transition zone of an enriched Iherzolitic source The lavas display rather large ranges in Sr isotopic ratios (0 70307-0 70436) The Nd-143/Nd-144 ratio variations are smaller (0 51268-0 51300) and these of Pb-206/Pb-204 Pb-208/Pb-204 and Pb-207/Pb-204 are 18 745-19 515 38 53239 228 and 15 567-15 680 respectively The Languedoc lithospheric mantle as sampled by xenoliths is globally similar to the Pyrenees lithosphere The xenoliths show also rather large Sr Nd and Pb isotopic variations (Sr-87/Sr-86 0 70287-0 70578 Nd-143/Nd-144 0 51256-0 51414 Pb-208/Pb-204 37772-39 041 Pb-206/Pb-204 17 901-19 353) except for Pb-207/Pb-204 (15 570-15 620) The Pb-206/Pb-204 and La/Sm ratios are positively correlated both in xenoliths and lavas The increase of the Pb-206/Pb-204 (which could be interpreted as participation of the European Asthenospheric Reservoir EAR) is probably related to volatile-rich (carbonated?) fluid percolation This is corroborated by LILE and HFSE patterns observed in several xenoliths Therefore our data on lavas and xenoliths suggest a lithospheric origin for this long lived magmatism We propose (1) that the role of the asthenosphere in the Languedoc volcanism was restricted to volatile-rich fluid supplying and (2) that the fluid injection within the lithosphere may be related to the arrival of the Central Atlantic Plume head beneath Western Europe about 70 Ma ago In this model the isotopic signature of the oldest lavas (>70 Ma) would be that of the mantle lithosphere inherited from Hercynian processes The signatures of the subsequent lavas would be driven by the metasomatic component stored within the lithosphere and preferentially mobilized during incipient melting This metasomatised lower lithosphere was close to its solidus and small changes in P (or T) triggered incipient melting leading to basaltic volcanism Successive local re adjustments of the lithospheric blocks which accompanied the Meso-Cenozoic evolution of the Thetys Ligurian margin towards the present Mediterranean margin are the probable cause of these changes and so the sporadic volcanic activity in Languedoc is unrelated to deep asthenospheric processes
ISSN: 0024-4937

hal-00558884
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00558884
DOI : 10.1016/j.lithos.2010.04.009

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
Most peridotite massifs and mantle xenoliths show a wide range of isotopic variations, often involving significant decoupling between Hf, Nd and Sr isotopes. These variations are generally ascribed either to mingling of individual components of contrasted isotopic compositions or to time integration of parent-element enrichment by percolating melts/fluids, superimposed onto previous depletion event(s). However, strong isotopic decoupling may also arise during porous flow as a result of daughter-elements fractionation during solid-liquid interaction. Although porous flow is recognized as an important process in mantle rocks, its effects on mantle isotopic variability have been barely investigated so far. The peridotites of the Lherz massif (French Pyrenees) display a frozen melt percolation front separating highly refractory harzburgites from refertilized lherzolites. Isotopic signatures observed at the melt percolation front show a strong decoupling of Hf from Nd and Sr isotopes that cannot be accounted for by simple mixing involving the harzburgite protolith and the percolating melt. Using one dimensional percolation-diffusion and percolation-reaction modeling, we show that these signatures represent transient isotopic compositions generated by porous flow. These signatures are governed by a few critical parameters such as daughter element concentrations in melt and peridotite, element diffusivity, and efficiency of isotopic homogenization rather than by the chromatographic effect of melt transport and the refertilization reaction. Subtle variations in these parameters may generate significant inter-isotopic decoupling and wide isotopic variations in mantle rocks. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
ISSN: 0012-821X

hal-00413135
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00413135
DOI : 10.1016/j.epsl.2008.12.033

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
Synkinematic phyllosilicates in fault zones can be used to deduce the deformation mechanisms and the conditions of fault activity, as their chemical composition, crystal structure and texture can record the different stages of deformation and fluid-rock interactions. The Pic de Port Vieux, a second-order thrust related to the major Gavarnie thrust in the southern central part of the Pyrenees Axial Zone, juxtaposes Triassic pelites of the hanging wall and Cretaceous limestones of the footwall. In order to investigate the mineralogical and geochemical changes and constrain the deformation conditions of thrusting, characterization of phyllosilicates was performed along a transect in the fault hanging wall pelites. The Triassic pelites are mainly composed of quartz, calcite, phyllosilicates (chlorite and K-white mica) and ± hematite. The core fault zone thickness is estimated to be about one meter of intensively foliated green pelites, whereas the damage zone is composed of several meters of red pelites. XRD data demonstrated that the difference in color is related to hematite which is only present in the damage zone. Phyllosilicates of the damage zone are mainly inherited/diagenetic K-white mica and chlorite. In the core zone, newly formed chlorite is abundant and preferentially located in veins. It is enriched in Fe compared to the chlorite of the red pelites. The well-defined foliation in the core zone is overlaid by preferentially oriented muscovite grains which have homogeneous compositions, with less Na and relatively more Fe than mica from the red pelites. Newly formed chlorite and muscovite in the core zone are synkinematic to the fault activity. They are both related to deformation processes and fluid rock interactions. Kübler index measurements and chlorite thermometry show that synkinematic phyllosilicates have registered a temperature of 270°C ± 23°C for the damage zone and 285°C ± 28°C for the core zone which are corresponding to lower-anchizone/epizone grade conditions. Numerical modelling with the geochemical modelling program PhreeqC was performed to determine the favorable conditions for the mineralogical change between red and green pelites. It suggests that the main critical parameter favoring hematite dissolution and chlorite precipitation in the core zone, is the redox conditions. According to the model, the chemical changes in the core zone occurred due to interactions with highly reductive fluids. In addition, the hematite dissolution maybe the source of iron for newly formed phyllosilicates in the core zone that are more iron rich compared to those from the red pelites.
ISSN: 0169-1317

hal-01536006
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01536006
DOI : 10.1016/j.clay.2017.05.008

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
The Parentis and Arzacq-Mauleon basins located in front of the V-shaped oceanic propagator in the Bay of Biscay present evidence for extreme crustal thinning. In this paper we investigate the 3D structure of these rift basins, based on field observations and the interpretation of seismic data. We compare these results with those obtained from two different and independent inversion methods: first a 3D gravity inversion and second the standard Euler deconvolution.;For the Mauleon Basin our results show that the positive gravimetric anomaly identified above its southern margin is the consequence of two shallower high density bodies that are separated by the Pamplona fault and a deeper high density body. The high density bodies can be explained by the presence of mid-crustal and mantle rocks that were exhumed or uplifted at shallower depth during Early Cretaceous rifting before they were reworked and integrated to the Pyrenean chain during compression phase. Also, during this reactivation phase, some slices of the exhumed mid-crustal and mantle rocks were sheared off and were integrated in the present-day thrust belt in the Mauleon basin. For the Parentis Basin we can demonstrate, based on seismic data and gravimetric inversion methods, a decrease in extension from west to east, which is compatible with the V-shape geometry of the overall basin. Along strike, a change in the fault geometry from downward concave top-basement detachment faults to upward concave high-angle faults can be observed eastwards, i.e. towards the termination of the basin. A key structure, controlling the evolution of the Parentis Basin, is the east-west trending Ibis fault. We interpret this fault to have initially formed as a strike slip fault before it was reactivated during later crustal thinning. At present, it forms the limit between an upper plate sag basin to the north and a lower plate sag basin, floored at least locally by a top-basement detachment faults to the south. The strong asymmetry of the basin is supported by the shape of the basin and the results of standard Euler deconvolution.
ISSN: 0040-1951

hal-00523444
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00523444
DOI : 10.1016/j.tecto.2010.04.023

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD American Geophysical Union (AGU)
Résumé : Present Address : ISTO - UMR7327
International audience
The pre-rift Mesozoic sequences of the Cretaceous passive margins fossilized in the North Pyrenean Zone (NPZ) are characterized by high temperature deformation in relation with thinning of the continental basement. Our compilation of chronological and geological data confirms a clear correlation between the distribution of the highest paleotemperatures in the pre-rift sedimentary cover and the loci of extreme crustal stretching. Geological evidences such as the occurrence of peridotite bodies directly underlying metamorphic pre-rift sediments indicate an early attenuation of the rifted continental crust. This leads us to propose a mechanism of rifting involving boudinage of the continental crust. The lateral extraction of the Paleozoic basement occurred under the pre-rift cover that is decoupled on the Triassic clays and evaporates. The thermal conditions allowing coeval ductile deformation of the crust and of the pre-rift sediments leaded to the widening of basins devoid of large faulted blocks. We discuss the implications on the origin and significance of the granulites and the relations between flysch deposition and high temperature metamorphism of the pre-rift sediments. In the NPZ, Albian-Cenomanian flysch sequences were deposited synchronously with the syn-metamorphic ductile deformation of the pre-rift sequences. Since the base of the flysch deposits also recorded locally the high-temperature tectonic event, we propose an original mechanism for the evolution of the basins involving continuous deformation of the pre-rift metamorphic sediments. At the scale of the Pyrenean domain, our results suggest a strong lateral variability in the tectonic style of passive margins, in direct link with their thermic pattern
ISSN: 0278-7407

insu-01017432
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01017432
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01017432/document
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01017432/file/tect20164.pdf
DOI : 10.1002/2013TC003471

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
The initiation and subsequent evolution of intra-plate orogens, resulting from continental plate interior deformation due to transmission of stresses over large distances from the active plate boundaries, is controlled by lateral and vertical strength contrasts in the lithosphere. We present lithospheric-scale analogue models combining 1) lateral strength variations in the continental lithosphere, and 2) different vertical rheological stratifications. The experimental continental lithosphere has a four-layer brittle–ductile rheological stratification. Lateral heterogeneity is implemented in all models by increased crustal strength in a central narrow block. The main investigated parameters are strain rate and strength of the lithospheric mantle, both playing an important role in crust–mantle coupling. The experiments show that the presence of a strong crustal domain is effective in localizing deformation along its boundaries. After deformation is localized, the evolution of the orogenic system is governed by the mechanical properties of the lithosphere such that the final geometry of the intra-plate mountain depends on the interplay between crust–mantle coupling and folding versus fracturing of the lithospheric mantle. Underthrusting is the main deformation mode in case of high convergence velocity and/or thick brittle mantle with a final asymmetric architecture of the deep lithosphere. In contrast, lithospheric folding is dominant in case of low convergence velocity and low strength brittle mantle, leading to the development of a symmetric lithospheric root. The presented analogue modelling results provide novel insights for 1) strain localization and 2) the development of the asymmetric architecture of the Pyrenees.
ISSN: 0012-821X

hal-01243577
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01243577
DOI : 10.1016/j.epsl.2015.05.022

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Springer Verlag
Résumé : International audience
Cobalt-bearing pyrite (0.5-2.0 wt.% Co) is abnormally abundant (up to 35 vol.% of the total volume of the sulfide phase) in some eastern Pyrenean peridotite massifs, compared to pieces of subcontinental mantle studied so far for sulfides. Pyrite occurs as vermicular intergrowths inside pentlandite and/or chalcopyrite or as coarser, blocky grains in the intergranular pores of host peridotites. Those different pyrites are characterized by different platinum-group element systematics (measured by laser ablation microprobe and ICP-MS). Vermicular pyrite intergrown with pentlandite displays Os-, Ir-, Ru- and Rh-enriched chondrite normalized PGE patterns of Monosulfide solid solution (Mss). In contrast, coarse-grained intergranular ("blocky") pyrites, are PGE-poor. Chalcophile trace elements (i.e. Zn, Pb, Ag, Au) that are not usually concentrated in mantle-derived sulfides were commonly detected. By contrast, selenium contents are generally low, yielding thus pyrite with high S/Se ratio (> 10(5)), consistent with a sedimentary sulfur source. Pyrite microtextures and chalcophile trace element contents support a process of assimilation of crustal sulfur from the metamorphosed sedimentary country rocks. These latter generated highly reactive CO2-S fluids, which were injected into structural discontinuities of the lherzolitic bodies. Sulfur has reacted at T = 300-550A degrees C with pre-existing, mantle-derived, metal-rich sulfide assemblages (pentlandite-chalcopyrite). Addition of crustal sulfur did produce Mss which, on cooling, exsolved the Os-rich pyrite in addition to pentlandite. The coarse-grained pyrite types have crystallized directly from S-rich fluids.
ISSN: 0010-7999

hal-00617425
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00617425
DOI : 10.1007/s00710-010-0138-2

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD
Résumé : International audience
The way faults control upward fluid flow in extensive hydrothermal systems without an abnormal heat source such as volcanic or plutonic activity is still unclear. In the Eastern Pyrénées, an alignment of 29 hot springs (from 29 • C to 73 • C) along the Têt normal Fault offers the opportunity to study this process. Using an integrated multi-scale geological approach including mapping, remote sensing, macro and microscopic analyses of fault zones, we show that hot springs locate close to high topographic reliefs related to fault throw and segmentation. Emergences are always in crystalline rocks at gneiss-metasediments contacts, mostly in the Têt Fault footwall. In more details, they localize either (1) in brittle fault damage zones at the intersection between the Têt Fault and subsidiary faults, and (2) into hercynian ductile faults where dissolution cavities run along shear zones. Using these observations and 2D preliminary numerical simulations, we propose a hydrogeological model of upward hydrothermal flow. Meteoric fluids infiltrate at high altitude in the fault footwall relief where they acquire temperature because of the geothermal gradient. Hydraulic gradient and buoyancy forces allow them to upflow along fault-related permeability anisotropies. The identification and prioritization of the features controlling this kind of system have important implications for geothermal exploration and for the understanding of fluid-flow into the brittle Earth's crust in general.
EGU 2017
Vienne, Austria

hal-01491096
https://hal-brgm.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01491096
https://hal-brgm.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01491096/document
https://hal-brgm.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01491096/file/EGU2017-Taillefer-etal_4996.pdf

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
In fold-and-thrust belts, shortening is mainly accommodated by thrust faults which are preferential zones for recrystallisation and mass transfer. This study focuses on a detachment fault related to the emplacement of the Monte Perdido thrust unit in the southern Pyrenees. The studied fault zone consists of a 10 m thick intensively foliated phyllonite developed within the Millaris marls, of Eocene age. The lithological homogeneity of the hanging wall and footwall allows us to compare the Millaris marls outside the fault zone with the highly deformed marls located in the fault zone and to quantify the chemical, mineralogical and volumetric changes related to deformation processes along the fault. The Millaris marls are composed of detrital quartz, illite, chlorite, minor albite and pyrite, in a micritic calcite matrix. In the fault zone, the cleavage planes are marked by clay minerals and calcite ± chlorite veins attest to fluid-mineral interactions during deformation. The mineral proportions in all samples from both the fault zone and Millaris marls have been quantified by two methods: (1) X-ray diffraction and Rietveld refinement, and (2) bulk chemical analyses as well as microprobe analyses to calculate modal composition. The excellent agreement between the results of these two methods allows us to estimate mineralogical variations using a modification of the Gresens' equation. During fault activation, up to 45 wt% of calcite was lost while the amounts of quartz and chlorite remained unchanged. Illite content remained constant to slightly enriched. The mineralogical variations were coupled with a significant volume loss (up to 45%) mostly due to the dissolution of micritic calcite grains. Deformation was accompanied by pressure solution and phyllosilicates recrystallisation. These processes accommodated slip along the fault. They required fluids as catalyst, but they did not necessitate major chemical transfers.
ISSN: 0264-8172

hal-00976361
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00976361
DOI : 10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2013.12.016

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Springer Verlag
Résumé : International audience
Brecciated and fractured peridotites with a carbonate matrix, referred to as ophicalcites, are common features of mantle rocks exhumed in passive margins and mid-oceanic ridges. Ophicalcites have been found in close association with massive peridotites, which form the numerous ultramafic bodies scattered along the North Pyrenean Zone (NPZ), on the northern flank of the Pyrenean belt. We present the first field, textural and stable isotopic characterization of these rocks. Our observations show that Pyrenean ophicalcites belong to three main types: (1) a wide variety of breccias composed of sorted or unsorted millimeter- to meter-sized clasts of fresh or oxidized ultramafic material, in a fine-grained calcitic matrix; (2) calcitic veins penetrating into fractured serpentine and fresh peridotite; and (3) pervasive substitution of serpentine minerals by calcite. Stable isotopic analyses (O, C) have been conducted on the carbonate matrix, veins and clasts of samples from 12 Pyrenean ultramafic bodies. We show that the Pyrenean ophicalcites are the product of three distinct genetic processes: (1) pervasive ophicalcite resulting from relatively deep and hot hydrothermal activity; (2) ophicalcites in veins resulting from tectonic fracturing and cooler hydrothermal activity; and (3) polymictic breccias resulting from sedimentary processes occurring after the exposure of subcontinental mantle as portions of the floor of basins which opened during the mid-Cretaceous. We highlight a major difference between the eastern and western Pyrenean ophicalcites belonging, respectively, to the sedimentary and to the hydrothermal types. Our data set points to a possible origin of the sedimentary ophicalcites in continental endorheic basins, but a post-depositional evolution by circulation of metamorphic fluids or an origin from relatively warm marine waters cannot be ruled out. Finally, we discuss the significance of such discrepancy in the characteristics of the NPZ ophicalcites in the frame of the variable exhumation history of the peridotites all along the Pyrenean realm.
ISSN: 1437-3254

insu-00944405
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00944405
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00944405/document
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-00944405/file/clerc-etal-IJES-Review.pdf
DOI : 10.1007/s00531-013-0927-z

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Elsevier
Résumé : International audience
We compile field data collected along the eastern part of the North Pyrenean Zone (NPZ) to point to a tectonic evolution under peculiar thermal conditions applying to the basin sediments in relation with the opening of the Cretaceous Pyrenean rift. Based on this compilation, we show that when thinning of the continental crust increased , isotherms moved closer to the surface with the result that the brittle-ductile transition propagated upward and reached sediments deposited at the early stage of the basin opening. During the continental breakup, the pre-rift Mesozoic cover was efficiently decoupled from the Paleozoic basement along the Triassic evaporite level and underwent drastic ductile thinning and boudinage. We suggest that the upper Albian and upper Creta-ceous flysches acted as a blanket allowing temperature increase in the mobile pre-rift cover. Finally, we show that continuous spreading of the basin floor triggered the exhumation of the metamorphic, ductily sheared pre-rift cover, thus contributing to the progressive thinning of the sedimentary pile. In a second step, we investigate the detailed geological records of such a hot regime evolution along a reference-section of the eastern NPZ. We propose a balanced restoration from the Mouthoumet basement massif (north) to the Boucheville Albian basin (south). This section shows a north to south increase in the HT Pyrenean imprint from almost no metamorphic recrystallization to more than 600 °C in the pre-and syn-rift sediments. From this reconstruction, we propose a scenario of tectonic thinning involving the exhumation of the pre-rift cover by the activation of various detachment surfaces at different levels in the sedimentary pile. In a third step, examination of the architecture of current distal passive margin domains provides confident comparison between the Pyrenean case and modern analogs. Finally, we propose a general evolutionary model for the pre-rift sequence of the Northeastern Pyrenean rifted margin.
ISSN: 0040-1951

Droits : http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/
insu-01355131
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01355131
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01355131/document
https://hal-insu.archives-ouvertes.fr/insu-01355131/file/TECTO10807-Incorporated%20changes-rev2.pdf
DOI : 10.1016/j.tecto.2016.07.022