Rapakivi texture in porphyritic dikes within the Karavanke granitic massif (Slovenia)

Abstract

The northern Karavanke Granitic Massif straddles the Slovenian–Austrian border. The investigated area lies in northern Slovenia, and extends from the western Slovenian–Austrian border to the east for about 30 km, with a maximum width of 2 km. The massif exhibits a bimodal magmatic association comprising mainly syenogranite and syenite with contemporaneous gabbroic rocks. Rocks of intermediate composition are less abundant and show field, textural and chemical features suggesting that they have formed as a result of the interaction (mixing and mingling) between felsic and mafic magmas. Plagioclase-mantled alkali feldspars occur in dikes of porphyritic syenite, which cut larger bodies of gabbroic rocks. Field, mineralogical, petrographic and geochemical evidences suggest that the porphyritic syenite is a hybrid rock, formed by the interaction of mafic and felsic magmas. The formation of plagioclase-mantled alkali feldspar can be explained by the introduction of alkali feldspar from felsic, syenogranitic magma into more mafic magma, causing local undercooling in the portion of mafic magma surrounding the crystals. This resulted in the growth of cellular plagioclase, with quartz infilling, in a thermally and compositionally equilibrating system.

Keywords

• dikes
• syenites
• porphyritic texture
• phenocrysts
• alkali feldspar
• plagioclase
• geochemistry
• Triassic
• Karavanke
• Slovenia