The work is a vivid description of the structural relationship between brittle deformation of the Precambrian basement in the southern continental part of the Cameroon Line and intrusive Paleozoic and Mesozoic basalt dykes swarms. A multidisciplinary approach that involves a combination of remote sensing techniques and field studies show that the major trend of brittle structures correspond to well-known regional structures: N70˚E (Adamawa Shear Zone), N135˚E (upper Benue trend) and N30˚E (Cameroon Volcanic Line) corresponding to E-W and N-S directions respectively. Basalt dykes are associated to NE-SW, E-W and NW-SE oriented fractures. An integration of the available information on brittle structures and basalt dykes directions suggest an emplacement of the Mesozoic and Paleozoic basalt dykes structurally controlled by Precambrian structures that were originated through Riedel's fracture kinematic model with dextral strike-slip Adamawa Shear Zone as the main shear zone during late stage of the Pan-African collision. Spatially, the restriction of the basalt dykes to the corridor of the Adamawa Shear Zone indicate that a rejuvenation of Precambrian faults may very well be the origin of the dykes with possibility that they may have been reworked several times during the Phanerozoic eon.
In the western Cameroon, crop out several dyke swarms of Paleozoic–Mesozoic age. These dykes intrude the Precambrian basement in the southern continental part of the Cretaceous Cameroon Volcanic Line. In the Njimom area, two groups of mafic dykes that crosscut the Neoproterozoic basement rocks have been observed. A first group intrudes the mylonites whereas the second group intrudes the granites. The dykes are alkaline basalts and hawaiites. The mineralogical assemblage of both groups of dykes consists of plagioclase, clinopyroxene, altered olivine, and opaque oxides. The dykes that cross-cut the Precambrian mylonitic gneisses show moderate TiO2 (1.7–2.0 wt.%), low MgO (4.4–7.1 wt.%), and compatible trace element concentrations (e.g., Cr = 70–180 ppm; Ni = 30–110 ppm). The dykes that intrude the granites have TiO2 contents between 2.3 and 2.5 wt.% and moderate compatible trace element concentrations (e.g., Cr = 260–280 ppm; Ni = 170–230 ppm). MgO varies from 5.9 to 9.2 wt.%. All mafic dykes are enriched in light lanthanide element and show moderate Zr/Nb and high Zr/Y, Nb/Yb, and Ti/V ratios similar to those of average ocean island basalt (OIB)-type magmas. Some dykes that intrude the mylonites show evidence of contamination by continental crust. The composition of the clinopyroxenes of the dykes that intrude the mylonites clearly indicate different and unrelated parental magmas from dykes that intrude the granites. Contents and fractionation of the least and the most incompatible elements suggest low degrees of partial melting (3–5%) of heterogeneous source slightly enriched in incompatible elements in the spinel stability field. The geochemical features of Njimom dykes (in particular the dykes that intrude the granites) are similar to those of Paleozoic and Mesozoic dykes recorded in the southern continental part of the Cameroon Volcanic Line, suggesting multiple reactivations of pre-existing fractures that resulted in the fragmentation of western Gondwana and the opening of the South Atlantic Ocean.
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