22-EPN3-047: Vein networks in the Variscan foreland basins in western Europe
Visit by Jeroen van der Lubbe of the Vrije Universiteit (Netherlands) to TA2.9 Ion Probe Facility (IPF), CRPG (France)
Dates of visit: 13-17 November 2023
Report Summary: The primary objective of the proposed research is to investigate the mechanisms of fluid and trace metal transportation from the deeper orogen to the mid-upper crustal levels. These levels are particularly significant as they are known to host mineralisation, including metals that play a crucial role in facilitating the energy transition. In this research, an examination is conducted on samples of quartz veins originating from the High Ardennes Slate Belt in the Rursee region of Germany, as well as its equivalent in Almograve, Portugal. The objective is to establish limitations on the movement of fluids and elements within upper crustal settings. The presence of veins in our research among allochthonous terranes with a peri-Gondwanan affinity provides support for the hypothesis that these veins may have originated from the same sources during the Variscan orogeny.
This research is a component of the ITN FluidNET initiative, which seeks to comprehend the fluid mobility and elemental transport across various levels of the Earth’s crust, including the lower, middle, and upper sections. The current investigation is done on context of the doctoral study of Akbar Huseynov, who focusses on the fluid migration and vein formation in the upper crust. The FluidNET project aims to validate its overarching hypotheses by employing various isotopic techniques involving radiogenic and stable isotopes, examining trace element distributions within fluid inclusions, and conducting geochronological analysis of fluid inclusions. These methods enable the project to trace the migration of fluids across a range of scales, from nano- to kilometres. The primary objective of this study is to enhance our understanding about the transport fluxes of metals that are crucial to current energy transition. To do this, the research aims to integrate fluid transport across temporal and spatial dimensions via the use of analytical and numerical methodologies.
