Petrology of Gabbros from the Khanozai Ophiolite, Balochistan Pakistan. Geology Petrography, Geochemistry and classification of Gabbroic Rocks from the Khanozai Ophiolite NW Balochistan

      Аннотация: This book reports the geology, petrography and major elements geochemistry of gabbroic rocks from an ophiolite exposure called as Khanozai Ophiolite for the first time. This ophiolite is exposed in NW Pakistan and has a well-developed crustal section with a thick mafic cumulate unit. I have classified the gabbroic rocks and used the results of my data for the determination of nature and processes of formation of these gabbros. The Khanozai Ophiolite is one of the segments of ophiolites that mark the western suture of Indian plate. This suture zone of the ophiolites exposures is entering south and southwestward into the subduction setting of the Makran-Chagai arc where the Arabian Plate is subducting beneath the Afghan plate. I also correlated the Khanozai gabbros with gabbros from Semail Ophiolite. The mineralogy of the gabbros indicate that they have both primitive and evolved components.The structure of Khanozai Ophiolite’ crustal section, with a well-developed plutonic sequence and absence of sheeted dyke indicate that these rocks may have formed in a tectonic setting with a slow spreading rate over different periods of time as a consequence of episodic low magma supply rates.

Ключевые слова: gabbro, Ophiolite, crustal section, ultramafic cumulate, classification