Physical conditions for basaltic volcanism beneath the Jeju volcanic field and the geodynamic implications

Abstract

The origin of the late Cenozoic intraplate volcanoes in the NE Asia has sparked debate, with explanations ranging from deep mantle plume to lithospheric extension and decompression melting of mantle upwelling by distal subduction tectonics. The Jeju volcanic field (JVF), being the closest late Cenozoic intraplate volcano to the subduction zone, sheds light on whether the intraplate volcanism is primarily plume-related or linked to plate tectonics. This study determined the primary magma composition for JVF basalts, using the most primitive bulk-rock samples (MgO > 8.5 wt%), by incrementally adding olivine to melt until reaching equilibrium with olivine (Mg# = 90) in the residual mantle. The estimated temperature and pressure of mantle melting are 1,466–1,587 °C and 2.1–4.1 GPa for anhydrous primary magma and 1,347–1,512 °C and 2.0–3.6 GPa for hydrous primary magma within the acceptable range of water contents (H₂O = 2–4 wt%) reported from the Chinese intraplate basalts. The pressure estimates suggest that the minimal depth of the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary is approximately ∼50–55 km. The mantle potential temperature for anhydrous primary magma is estimated to be 1,460–1,580 °C, higher than 1,300–1,400 °C of the ambient upper mantle, indicating a hot thermal regime below the JVF. Despite the absence of geophysical evidence for a mantle plume beneath the JVF, this study proposes that the hot mantle wedge is likely caused by the lateral influx or edge-driven convective upwelling of thermal plume near the leading edge of the stagnant Pacific Plate slab, contributing to the big mantle wedge. Intraplate volcanism in the JVF is proposed to be driven by lithospheric extension and decompression melting of the convective upwelling of hot sub-lithospheric mantle, influenced by distal subduction tectonics in the hot subduction zone. This model is supported by the present-day tectonics observed in the hot Ryukyu subduction zone, SW Japan.