Partial delamination of continental mantle lithosphere, uplift-related crust–mantle decoupling, volcanism and basin formation: a new model for the Pliocene–Quaternary evolution of the southern East-Carpathians, Romania

Tertiary-Quaternary subduction processes and related magmatism in the Alpine-Mediterranean region

“…Gradual slab detachment was also proposed in the evolution of the Carpathian arc by other authors (von Nemčok et al 1998;Wortel & Spakman 2000;Sperner et al 2002). Coexisting eruptions of alkaline basaltic and shoshonitic magmas in the southernmost part of the East Carpathians lead Gîrbacea & Frisch (1998) and Chalot-Prat & Gîrbacea (2000) to suggest partial delamination of the lower lithosphere beneath this area. In contrast to these models, Balla (1981), Szabó et al (1992) and Downes et al (1995a) considered that melt generation in the whole calc-alkaline suite was a direct consequence of subduction of the European plate and occurred in the metasomatized mantle wedge above the downgoing slab.…”

“…Delamination or convective removal of the lithospheric mantle could also lead to generation of magmas with 'subduction-related' geochemical features (e.g., Turner et al 1996;Chalot-Prat & Gîrbacea 2000; Fig. 2D).…”

“…The slab break-off is now in the final stage beneath the southern part of the Eastern Carpathians (Vrancea zone), where the detaching near vertical subducted slab causes intermediate depth seismicity (Oncescu et al 1984;Oncescu & Benjer 1997;Sperner et al 2001). Chalot-Prat & Gîrbacea (2000) suggested partial delamination of the lithospheric mantle beneath this region.…”

“…Indeed, formation of most of the 'orogenic' volcanic rocks in the Mediterranean regions postdates the active subduction process and appear to be related to slab break-off, lithospheric mantle delamination or lithospheric extension (e.g. Seyitoğlu et al 1999;Mason et al 1998;Turner et al 1999;Aldanmaz et al 2000;Chalot-Prat & Gîrbacea 2000;Wortel & Spakman 2000;Harangi 2001a;Coulon et al 2002;Seghedi et al 2004). The 'subduction-related' geochemical character of the volcanic rocks is inherited from the mantle source regions modified previously (a few millions to several tens or even hundreds of million years before) by fluids released from subducted slabs.…”

Genesis of the Neogene to Quaternary volcanism in the Carpathian-Pannonian region: Role of subduction, extension, and mantle plume

“…As an alternative for the slab break-off model, horizontal delamination of the lower part of the continental lithosphere following subduction (Doglioni, 1993;Gîrbacea and Frisch, 1998;Chalot-Prat and Gîrbacea, 2000;Sperner et al, 2001Sperner et al, , 2004Gvirtzman, 2002) or without any subduction (Knapp et al, 2005) has been suggested. Delamination of the lower lithosphere could initiate an asthenospheric mantle fl ow and provide heat to generate small-volume potassic magma in the metasomatized regions of the lithospheric mantle.…”