• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
• /
• v.35 no.3
• /
• pp.215-233
• /
• 2022

The zircon U-Pb and trace element analyses were performed for banded gneiss in the Euiam gneiss complex, central Gyeonggi Massif. An age of detrital zircon shows predominant age peaks at ca. 2500-2480 Ma with numerous ages ranging from Siderian to Rhyacian period. The youngest age peak of detrital zircon constrains the maximum deposition age of protolith of banded gneiss at ca. 2070 Ma. Meanwhile, the zircon rim yielded metamorphic age of ca. 1966 ± 39 Ma ~ 1918 ± 13 Ma. Based on the error range, degree of discordancy, and value of mean squared weighted deviation, we considered that the age of 1918 ± 13 Ma is the most reasonable age indicating the timing of metamorphism for banded gneiss. The zircon rims yield Ti-in-zircon crystallization temperature of 690-740℃. Therefore, we suggested that there was a high-grade metamorphic event in the Gyeonggi Massif at ca. 1918 Ma which is older than the metamorphic event that occurred in the Gyeonggi Massif during ca. 1880-1860 Ma.

• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
• /
• v.35 no.3
• /
• pp.235-258
• /
• 2022

We interpreted the evolutionary history of the southwestern part of the Pohang Basin, the largest Miocene basin in the southeastern part of the Korean Peninsula, based on the detailed geological mapping and analysis of the geological structures. The southwestern part of the Pohang Basin can be divided into the Bomun Domain in the west and Ocheon Domain in the east by an NNE-trending horst-in-graben. These two domains have different geometries and deformation histories. The Bomun Domain was rarely deformed after the incipient extension of the basin, whereas the Ocheon Domain is an area where continued and overlapped deformations occurred after the basin fill deposition. Therefore, the Bomun Domain provides critical information on the initial extension mode of the Pohang Basin. The subsidence of the Bomun Domain was led by the zigzag-shaped western border fault that consists of NNE-striking normal and NNW-striking dextral strike-slip fault segments. This border fault is connected to the Yeonil Tectonic Line (YTL), a regional dextral principal displacement zone and the westernmost limit of Miocene crustal deformation in SE Korea. Therefore, it is interpreted that the Pohang Basin was initially extended in WNW-ESE direction as a transtensional fault-termination basin resulting from the movement of NNE-striking normal and/or oblique-slip faults formed as right-stepover in the northern termination of the YTL activated since approximately 17-16.5 Ma. As a result, an NNE-trending asymmetric graben or half-graben exhibiting an westward deepening of basin depth was formed in the Bomun Domain. Afterward, crustal extension and deformation were migrated to the east, including the Ocheon Domain.

• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
• /
• v.35 no.3
• /
• pp.259-271
• /
• 2022

Lattice preferred orientation (LPO), which shows a specific lattice-orientation of minerals, is affected by the deformation conditions of minerals. Because of this reason, LPO is very useful to study the deformation conditions of the minerals and the rocks. In this study, we collected amphibole-rich rocks from the Geumgye Mountain, Chugye-ri, Yugu-eup, Chungcheongnamdo, located in the southwestern part of the Gyeonggi Massif, and analyzed the LPO of amphibole and plagioclase using electron backscattered diffraction. Two types of LPOs of amphibole, type I and type IV, were observed in Yugu amphibole-rich rocks. Our data suggest that the amphibole-rich rocks in Yugu were deformed by rigid body rotation regardless of the LPOs and grain size of amphibole, and the LPOs are considered to have been affected by the degree of deformation (i.e. strain). In the low strained amphibole-rich rock, a strong type I LPO and a large grain size of amphibole were observed. On the other hand, in the highly strained amphibole-rich rocks, a weak type IV LPO and a small grain size of amphibole were observed. The various degree of deformation observed in the Yugu amphibole-rich rocks were also observed in the adjacent peridotites, indicating that the rocks in Yugu experienced various levels of deformation.

• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
• /
• v.35 no.3
• /
• pp.183-197
• /
• 2022

Geochemical data, including Sr-Nd-Pb-Mg-Zn isotopes, reported on the late Cenozoic intraplate basaltic rocks in the Korean Peninsula (Mt. Baekdu, Jeongok, Baengnyeong Island, Pyeongtaek, Asan, Ganseong, Ulleung Island, Dok Island, and Jeju Island) are summarized to constrain their mantle source lithologies, and the nature of mantle end-members required. In the Sr-Nd isotope correlation diagram, Jeju basalts plot in the field of EM2-type oceanic island basalts (OIB), while the other basalts fall in the EM1-type OIB field. In Pb-Pb isotope space, Jeju basalts show a mixing array between Indian MORB and EM2 component, whereas the other basalts display an array with EM1 component. The Korean basalts were derived from a hybrid source of garnet lherzolite and recycled stagnant slab materials (eclogite/pyroxenite, pelagic sediments, carbonates) in the mantle transition zone. The EM1 component could be ancient (~2.0 Ga) K-hollandite-bearing pelagic sediments that were isolated for a long period in the mantle transition zone due to their neutral buoyancy. The EM2 component might have been relatively young (probably Pacific slab) and recently recycled clay-rich pelagic sediments. Eclogite and carbonates are unlikely to account for the EM components, but they are common in the mantle source of the Korean basalts.

• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
• /
• v.34 no.4
• /
• pp.209-218
• /
• 2021

Studies of pore structure in shale gas reservoirs are essential to increase recovery rates, which is in the spotlight concerning unconventional resources. In this study, the distribution of pores in shale gas reservoir sample were observed using Scanning Electron Microscope Particle Analysis (SELPA), which is appropriate to analyze the distribution of particle or shape for sample in large area. A sample from the A-068 borehole drilled in the Liard Basin was analyzed; calcite is the main mineral. The pore size ranges from tens of nanometers to hundreds of micrometers and the contribution of each pore size to overall sample porosity was determined using SELPA. The distribution of pores was determined by observing the surface in the same area at magnifications of ×1000, ×3000 and ×5000. Pores less than 100 nm were observed at high magnifications and confirm that small-scale pore distribution can be analyzed and identified rapidly using SELPA. The method introduced in this study will be useful to understand pore structures in unconventional reservoirs.

• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
• /
• v.35 no.3
• /
• pp.199-214
• /
• 2022

The Yeongnam Massif is one of representative basement provinces in the Korean Peninsula, which has experienced high-temperature, low-pressure (HTLP) regional metamorphism and partial melting. Here we reviewed recent developments in Paleoproterozoic (1.87-1.84 Ga) hot orogenesis of the Yeongnam Massif, typified by the granulite-facies metamorphism and partial melting recorded in the HTLP rocks. In particular, spatiotemporal linkage between the metamorphic and magmatic activities, including the Sancheong-Hadong anorthositic magma as a heat source, provides a key to understand the widespread HTLP metamorphism and partial melting in the Yeongnam Massif. Crustal anatexis, resulting from the fluid-present melting and muscovite/biotite dehydration melting, has yielded various types of leucosomes and leucogranites. Zircon and monazite petrochronology, using in-situ U(-Th)-Pb data from the secondary ion mass spectrometry, indicates that the HTLP metamorphism and anatexis lasted over a period of ~15 Ma at ca. 1870-1854 Ma. In addition, a fluid influx event at ca. 1840 Ma was locally recognized by the occurrence of incipient charnockite. Taken together, the Yeongnam Massif preserves a prolonged evolutionary record of the HTLP metamorphism, partial melting, and fluid influx diagnostic for a hot orogen. Such an orogen is linked to the Paleoproterozoic orogeny widespread in the North China Craton, and most likely represents the final phase of crustal evolution in the Columbia/Nuna supercontinent.

• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
• /
• v.35 no.3
• /
• pp.377-386
• /
• 2022

In addition to anthropogenic origins, fluorine (F) is naturally enriched in rocks due to geological events, such as magma dissemination, hydrothermal alteration, mineralization, and fault activities. Generally, it has been well known that F is chiefly enriched in the region of igneous and metamorphic rocks, and biotite granite was mostly distributed in the study area. The F enrichment mechanism was not sufficiently elucidated in the previous studies, and the study on a fault zone was conducted to reveal it more precisely. The mineral composition of the fault zone was identical to that of the Eulwangsan biotite granite (EBG), but they were quantitatively different between the two areas. Compared with the EBG, the fault zone showed relatively higher contents of quartz and F-bearing minerals (fluorite, sericite) but lower contents of plagioclase and alkali feldspar. This difference was likely due to hydrothermal mineral alterations. The results of microscopic observations supported this, and the generation of F-bearing minerals by hydrothermal alterations was recognized in most samples. Accordingly, it might be interpreted that the mineralogical and petrological differences observed in the same-age biotite granite widely distributed in the Yongyudo was caused by the hydrothermal alterations due to small-scale geological events.

• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
• /
• v.35 no.3
• /
• pp.273-281
• /
• 2022

Mantle heterogeneity is closely related to the distribution and circulation of volatile components in the Earth's interior, and the behavior of volatiles in the mantle strongly influences the rheological properties of silicate rocks. In mantle xenoliths, these physicochemical properties of the upper mantle can be recorded in the form of microstructures and fluid inclusions. In this paper, I summarized and reviewed the results of previous studies related to the characteristics of microstructures and fluid inclusions from peridotite xenoliths beneath the Rio Grande Rift (RGR) in order to understand the evolution and heterogeneity of upper mantle. In the RGR, the mantle peridotites are mainly reported in the rift axis (EB: Elephant Butte, KB: Kilbourne Hole) and rift flank (AD: Adam's Diggings) regions. In the case of the former (EB and KB peridotites), the type-A lattice preferred orientation (LPO), formed under low-stress and low-water content, was reported. In the case of the latter (AD peridotites), the type-C LPO, formed under low-stress and high-water content, was reported. In particular, in the case of AD peridotites, at least two fluid infiltration events, such as early (type-1: CO₂-N₂) and late (type-2: CO₂-H₂O), have been recorded in orthopyroxene. The upper mantle heterogeneity recorded by these microstructures and fluid inclusions is considered to be due to the interaction between the North American plate and the Farallon plate.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
• /
• v.56 no.4
• /
• pp.385-396
• /
• 2023

The Mesozoic Bansong Group, distributed along the NE-SW thrust fault zone of the Okcheon Fold Belt in the Danyang-Yeongwol-Jeongseon areas, contains important information on the two Mosozoic orogenic cycles in the Koran Peninsula, the Permian-Triassic Songrim Orogeny and the Jurassic Daebo Orogeny. This study aims to review previous studies on the stratigraphy, depositional period, and basin evolution of the Bansong Group and to suggest future research directions. The perspective on the implication of the Bansong Group in the context of the tectonic evolution of the Korean Peninsula is largely divided into two points of view. The traditional view assumes that it was deposited as a product of the post-collisional Songrim Orogeny and then subsequently deformed by the Daebo Orogeny. This interpretation is based on the stratigraphic, paleontologic, and structural geologic research carried out in the Danyang Coalfield area. On the other hand, recent research regards the Bansong Group as a product of syn-orogenic sedimentation during the Daebo Orogeny. This alternative view is based on the zircon U-Pb ages of pyroclastic rocks distributed in the Yeongwol area and their structural position. However, both models cannot comprehensively explain the paleontological and geochronological data derived from Bansong Group sediments. This suggests the need for a new basin evolution model integrated from multidisciplinary data obtained through sedimentology, structural geology, geochronology, petrology, and geochemistry studies.

• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
• /
• v.36 no.1
• /
• pp.1-17
• /
• 2023

On painting cultural properties to which Orpiment, a traditional yellow mineral pigment, is applied, the color's degeneration is frequently observed. To identify the cause of the degeneration, this study takes a look into orpiment and the various pigments that are mixed into it (Lead White, Lead Red, and Cinnabar) in powder and painting state. The pigment was mixed with Argyo glue and then applied to korean traditional paper and silk. Considering the possibility that alum causes the discoloration, it was applied to the specimen. With a UV tester, the powders and the painted specimens were subjected to a light resistance test in three phases (96 hour). Color changes were measured with a colorimeter and minerals, chemical composition and structural changes were analysed by XRD, SEM/EDS and Raman spectrometers. While the color change of pure Orpiment powder according to the light resistance test was small, the colored specimen became darker. The color change was large in the Orpiment colored on the silk and in the alum-treated specimen. In Orpiment powder was produced white arsenolite as altered orpiment after UV test. In the mixed powder of Orpiment and Lead White were detected only the constituent minerals of Orpiment and Lead White, and no altered substances were produced. Whereas after the UV test, orpiment and arsenolite, which were altered substances of orpiment, and the constituent minerals of Lead White were detected. In the case of mixing the two pigments in the powder state, darkening did not occur even by the UV test. However, the specimens colored with the mixed powder were darkened by the UV test. The color change of Orpiment was different depending on the mixed pigment and base material. The color change was greater in the case of alum treatment than in the case without alum treatment, and it was found that alum also had an influence on the color change of Orpiment.