Abstract
Oceanic basalts provide an invaluable window into evolutionary processes
governing mantle spatial and temporal chemical heterogeneity. Ocean
island basalts (OIBs) and enriched mid-ocean ridge basalts (E-MORBs) are
powerful tracers of mantle melting and crust-mantle recycling processes.
Whether the elemental and isotopic variations observed in both E-MORBs
and OIBs are derived from similar mechanisms, however, remains under
debate. Investigating compositional differences between E-MORBs and OIBs
is a simple approach to constrain their origins, a technique for which
machine learning classification algorithms are optimal. Here we
implemented a novel machine learning approach complemented by mantle
component mixing models to highlight compositional differences between
E-MORBs and OIBs and further investigate their petrogenesis (data
sourced from GEOROC database and Gale et al., 2013). Considering Random
Forest-based Gini indexes, elements sensitive to pressure and degree of
melting (FeO, TiO2, Lu, and Sr) were identified as the
best discriminators between E-MORBs and OIBs. Our Gaussian process
classification algorithm successfully classified OIBs and E-MORBs better
than 97% of the time when considering 1) Sr & FeO and 2)
TiO2 & Lu. The probabilistic nature of Gaussian process
modeling permitted calculation of new quantitative discriminant diagrams
rooted in probability (Sr vs. FeO and TiO2 vs. Lu).
Complementary trace element modeling yielded compositionally similar
E-MORB and OIB sources with moderately incompatible element enrichments
in the OIB source due to the influence of recycled oceanic crust
(Prytulak & Elliott, 2007). Our source compositions are consistent with
a simple, joint model for E-MORB and OIB petrogenesis after Donnelley et
al. (2014): low-degree partial melts of subducted slabs metasomatize the
depleted mantle producing a re-fertilized mantle (RM). RM is randomly
sampled at mid-ocean ridges to produce E-MORB, while upwelling plumes
sample both RM and recycled oceanic crust, yielding OIB. References:
Donnelly et al. (2004). Earth and Planet. Sci. Lett., 226(3–4),
347–366. Gale et al. (2013). Geochem., Geophys., Geosyst., 14(3),
489–518. Prytulak & Elliott (2007). Earth and Planet. Sci. Lett.,
263(3–4), 388–403.