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Classifying materials in the magma systems 43

Na 0 + K 0 wt%
2 2
15

13

trachyte
11 (q<20%)
foidite trachydacite
(q>20%)
9 rhyolite

7
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5
dacite
basaltic andesite
3
basalt andesite

37 41 45 49 53 57 61 65 69 73 77
ULTRABASIC BASIC INTERMEDIATE ACID Siq wt%
45 52 63

···:=·=··:·: -:::::::::::::::::::::::;:·::·::·:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:- '''''''b''' '''it:•·· ·····::=:: ::::;::;::;::;:;::;::;::::;:;:::;:::::::::;:::;:::-:-:·:·········

ay!~d~s_._i._t._e.......:,_:_:, _:_, _ ,:=_ ,' ,:_,-'_,·_~,-.',a_,:_ ·.c, :_,·h,':, :,Y:, _a,: ,:_,n ,:_,·d=,·.=,:.~,-=,:_s,._,:_,i t,·.=e,._,·=,·.=,:_,:·',:.=,•=:
Further subdivisions
of shaded fields :··!racii:Yhasai·i·.,\
:;.:::(.::~:;.::::::\.;.,:;:;.;:;.;.;! i.I.
trach
: '• ..:=:~: ..........·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·.·,·.·.·.·······
hawaiite mugearite benmoreite

potassic
shoshonite Ia Iite
trachybasalt

Rg. 2. 7 Chemical classification and nomenclature of volcanic rocks using the total alkali
versus silica (TAS) diagram. Adapted from Le Bas eta/., 1986, Figure 2, and Le Maitre et
at., 1989, p. 28.

at the top of magma chambers. When evaluating the

possible cumulate or non-cumulate origin of ultrama- 2.6 Chemical diversity of magmas
fic rocks one is forced to ponder the question of the
systematic position in a comprehensive classification Igneous rocks and magmas usually contain more
of the rocks of the upper mantle. They are unlike than one phase. In holocrystalline rocks all the
normal plutonic rocks because of the moderately phases are minerals, in volcanic rocks one frequently
high temperatures that pervade the upper mantle finds both minerals and glass, whereas in magmas the
and keep them in a near-magmatic, instead of a nor- dominant phase is usually a liquid. If one wishes to
mal plutonic, milieu. In this environment their com- classify these materials in a similar way one is
positions change as the result of both the periodic required to investigate their chemical compositions.
upward removal of magma, and the gradual infiltra- More than 99 per cent of the common igneous rocks
tion of volatiles and other components degassing and magmas are made up of the major components
from greater depths. Perhaps all rocks that solidify Si02. Ti02 , Al 20 3 , Fe 20 3 , FeO, MnO, MgO, CaO,
in the upper mantle should be grouped together as a NazO, KzO, P 2 0 5 , H 20 + and C0 2 • If scatter plots of
special class of rocks. various pairs of these oxides are prepared from a
 44 Magmas, Rocks and Planetary Development

0
Cll
l.::
+
0
Cll
c<J
z
?ft.
~
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90

- Abundant

m Moderately abundant·

~Rare
Fig. 2.8 A total alkali silica (TAS) diagram showing the relative abundance of
igneous rocks. Adapted from Le Maitre, 1976, p. 599.

tically examined Washington's (1917) major element

Si0 2 in Wt%
Fig. 2.9 Frequency distribution of silica for all igneous rocks.
Adapted from the trailblazing work of Richardson and
Sneesby, 1922, p. 306.
large database of igneous rocks (Le Maitre, 1976, p.
99) it is revealed that the oxides form a single, grada-
tional series, with significant clustering of data-points
in the subalkalic field that extends from basalt to
rhyolite via basaltic andesite, andesite and dacite
(see Fig. 2.7).
In most igneous rocks silica is the most abundant
oxide by weight. Fig. 2.8 shows that in the common
igneous rocks silica usually varies in abundance
between 43 per cent and 80 per cent. When consider-
ing these data it is important to remember that silicon
makes up only 0.2 per cent of the volume of the
Earth's crust, whereas oxygen makes up 92 per cent
of the volume. In 1922 Richardson and Sneesby cri-
database of selected analyses of igneous rocks and
found that silica had a bimodal frequency distribu-
tion with maxima at 52.5 per cent and 73.0 per cent
(see Fig. 2.9). When evaluating their figure one must
recognise that Washington's database was biased.
This was mainly because it lacked data on mid-oceanic
ridge basalts. If this bias is corrected the new data
shifts the primary maximum to a lower silica value in
the basic field. Chayes (1975 and 1979) constructed a
silica frequency distribution curve for the Cenozoic
volcanic rocks. This curve is unimodal, with a strong
positive skew (see Fig. 2.10). Enormous databases,
such as IGBADAT, are now readily available to pet-
rologists who wish to pursue what Chayes (1979)
labelled electronic computation and bookkeeping in
igneous petrology.
When the abundance data for plutonic rocks (Le
Maitre, 1976) are examined one discovers that over
half contain more than 63 per cent silica. This sup-
ports Daly's (1914 and 1933) pioneering research into
the abundance of igneous rocks in the accessible
parts of the Earth. He estimated that basalt was the
most abundant volcanic rock, and granite (sensu
lata) was the most abundant plutonic rock. A simple
silica frequency distribution curve is misleading,
because (1) it fails to separate the different sets of

30
Si02 in Wt%
Rg. 2.10 Frequency distribution of silica for over 10 000
chemical analyses of Cenozoic volcanic rocks. Adapted from
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Chayes, 1979, p. 18.
data from different magmatic lineages (see Fig. 2.11),
and (2) silica by itself does not provide an evenly
spaced measure of magmatic differentiation within
the various lineages. In the basic field (45-52 per
cent silica) one has to visualise the basaltic, trachy-
basaltic and phonotephritic rocks, with some com-
mon cumulate rocks (e.g. anorthosites and
pyroxenites) as all being stacked on top of one
another. At higher silica values the data for the ande-
sites, boninites, icelandites, trachyandesites and pho-
nolites are combined if one only considers their silica
values.
In a comprehensive evaluation of the relative
abundance of the different types of igneous rocks
one has to consider whether abundance has changed
through time. Theoretically one would expect change
because magmatic and appendant processes are
directly related to heat and its transference and
dissipation. In the Hadean, seas of lava-magma
may have been common. According to Abbott et
al. (1994, p. 13 847) the mean upper mantle tempera-
ture changed from 1437"C ± 40°C in the middle
Archean to 1272oC ± 7oC in the Phanerozoic. During
all geologic time some magmatic materials have been
generated at higher than normal temperatures. These
materials were probably generated by hot spot activ-
ity. In the middle Archean hot spot activity was prob-
ably responsible for the eruption of the non-cumulate
komatiitic lavas of the Barberton Greenstone Belt in
northeastern South Africa. These lavas contain up to
29 per cent MgO and they probably erupted at tem-
peratures of about 1580°C (Nisbet et a!., 1993, p.
305). Many geochemical and tectonophysical changes
are reported to have occurred during the transition
from the Archeozoic to the Proterozoic (Condie,
1989, p. 14). The Cenozoic is noted for its particu-
larly high abundance of alkaline rocks (see Fig. 2.11).
Classifying materials in the magma systems 45
25
Sigma isopleths shown in bold
Alkali
2.5
~ ~ " ~ ~ m ~ w ~
Silica
Rg. 2.11 A total alkali silica diagram showing the areas
occupied by the rocks of the subalkaline, midalkaline and
alkaline magmatic lineages. This diagram also shows sigma
isopleths. Sigma is an index devised by Rittmann (1957,
p. 34) and is equal to (Na 2 0+K2 0) 2/{SiOT43).
Condie (1989, p. 2) has suggested that alkaline rocks
were uncommon before 1.0 giga-years, and rare, or
absent, prior to 2.5 giga-years.
2. 7 TAS diagrams and sigma isopteths
The total alkali versus silica, or TAS, variation dia-
gram provides a uniform and apparently simple
method of using major element abundance data to
classify magmas and magmatic rocks (Le Maitre et
a!., 1989, p. 28; Fig. 2.7). In the past this diagram has
been used to illustrate a wide range of petrogenetic
trends (e.g. Tomkeieff, 1937 and 1953; Tilley, 1950;
Kuno et a!., 1957; Rittmann, 1962 and Saggerson
and Williams, 1964). In 1984 the lUGS Sub-
commission on the Systematics of Igneous Rocks
used a TAS diagram as the foundation of their
chemical classification of volcanic rocks (Fig. 2. 7).
The idea of using this type of diagram in the classi-
fication of volcanic rocks is not new, nor can it be
regarded as the ultimate classification of all volcanic
rocks. It does not readily separate the various types
of basaltic rocks that are frequently discussed in the
petrological literature.
The Subcommission used the TAS diagram to
define basalt (sensu Jato) and then employed the pre-
sence or absence of normative nepheline to decide
whether the rock was an alkali or subalkali basalt.
In the systematic classification of basalts it is prob-
ably just as important to acknowledge the presence of
normative quartz in the silica-oversaturated, sub-
alkali basalts. It is usually important to establish