K-Ar dating, whole-rock and Sr-Nd isotope geochemistry of calc-alkaline volcanic rocks around the Gümüşhane area: Implications for post-collisional volcanism in the Eastern Pontides, Northeast Turkey

Volcanic rocks from the Gümüşhane area in the southern part of the Eastern Pontides (NE Turkey) consist mainly of andesitic lava flows associated with tuffs, and rare basaltic dykes. The K-Ar whole-rock dating of these rocks range from 37.62 ± 3.33 Ma (Middle Eocene) to 30.02 ± 2.84 Ma (Early Oligocene) for the andesitic lava flows, but are 15.80 ± 1.71 Ma (Middle Miocene) for the basaltic dykes. Petrochemically, the volcanic rocks are dominantly medium-K calc-alkaline in composition and show enrichment of large ion lithophile elements, as well as depletion of high field strength elements, thus revealing that volcanic rocks evolved from a parental magmas derived from an enriched mantle source. Chondrite-normalized rare-earth element patterns of the volcanic rocks are concave upwards with low- to-medium enrichment (LaCN/LuCN = 3.39 to 12.56), thereby revealing clinopyroxene- and hornblende-dominated fractionations for andesitic-basaltic rocks and tuffs, respectively. The volcanic rocks have low initial 87Sr/86Sr ratios (0.70464 to 0.70494) and εNd(i) values (+1.11 to +3.08), with Nd-model ages (TDM) of 0.68 to 1.02 Ga, suggesting an enriched lithospheric mantle source of Proterozoic age. Trace element and isotopic data, as well as the modelling results, show that fractional crystallization and minor assimilation played an important role in the evolution of the volcanic rocks studied. The Eocene to Miocene volcanism in the region has resulted from lithospheric delamination and the associated convective thinning of the mantle, which led to the partial melting of the subduction-metasomatized lithospheric mantle.