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Abrat Suite
Stratigraphic label: [ppro]aba
Map symbol: pPaba
 

First published: 21 March 2018
Last modified: 7 October 2022

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   DISCLAIMER: This English version is translated from the original French. In case of any discrepancy, the French version shall prevail.  

Informal subdivision(s)
Numbering does not necessarily reflect the stratigraphic position.
 
pPaba1 Garnet-bearing anatectic granite
pPaba1a Garnet-bearing anatectic granite and tonalite
 
Author(s): Mathieu et al., 2018
Age: Paleoproterozoic
Stratotype: None
Type area: Koroc River and Point Le Droit area (NTS sheets 24I and 24P)
Geological province: Churchill Province
Geological subdivision: Falcoz Lithotectonic Domain
Lithology: Anatectic granite
Category: Lithodemic
Rank: Suite
Status: Formal
Use: Active

 

 

 

Background

The Abrat Suite was introduced in the Koroc River and Point Le Droit area (Mathieu et al., 2018). Most of the anatectic granites in the southeastern part of the Churchill Province (SECP) had been assigned to the Aveneau Suite by Simard et al. (2013), Lafrance et al. (2014, 2015, 2016) and Charette et al. (2016). Following the subdivision of the SECP into lithotectonic domains performed as part of a synthesis (Lafrance et al., 2018), the definition of the Aveneau Suite (pPavn) was revised to contain only anatectic granites located within the Baleine Lithotectonic Domain (Lafrance et al., 2020). In the Falcoz Lithotectonic Domain, anatectic granites have been assigned to either the Abrat Suite, when interpreted as being derived from partial melting of the Lake Harbour Suite paragneisses, or to the Fougeraye Complex, when interpreted instead as being derived from melting of the Kangiqsualujjuaq Complex orthogneisses (Mathieu et al., 2018). Lafrance and Vanier (2022) also reassigned anatectic intrusions previously attributed to the Sukaliuk Complex (ApPsuk5) by Lafrance et al. (2015, 2016) and Mathieu et al. (2018) to the Abrat Suite. The table below summarizes the correlations between the current and previous units.

 

Revised Units and Subunits Previous Units and Subunits Reference(s)

pPaba1

ApPban2

Verpaelst et al., 2000

pPavn1 (within the Falcoz Domain)

Simard et al., 2013; Lafrance et al., 2015

pPaba1a

pPavn1a (within the Falcoz Domain)

Simard et al., 2013; Lafrance et al., 2015

 

 

 

Description

The Abrat Suite consists of garnet-bearing felsic intrusive rocks (pPaba1) considered to be anatectic granites. These are interpreted to be the product of melting of the Lake Harbour Suite paragneisses. The Abrat Suite contains numerous paragneiss enclaves and layers belonging to the Lake Harbour Suite.

 

Abrat Suite 1 (pPaba1): Garnet-Bearing Anatectic Granite

 

Unit pPaba1 is a white, coarse grained, non-magnetic and mostly anatectic granitic, locally tonalitic rock. It can be massive or foliated, and the foliation is defined by the alignment of biotite, garnet, muscovite and commonly sillimanite. These represent between 3 and 10% of the mineral phases. Garnet occurs as small subhedral grains or subrounded poikiloblasts, 2 to 8 mm, cracked and with quartz and feldspar inclusions. Biotite is brown, often forms schlierens or clusters and contains numerous zircon inclusions and opaque mineral laminas. Sillimanite occurs in small grouped prisms or in fibrous form, forming then flexuous clusters, associated with micas. Muscovite occurs as small flakes on the edges of plagioclase grains or associated with biotite. Intergrowths between muscovite and sillimanite have been observed on several thin sections. Quartzofeldspathic minerals have an igneous appearance but also have indented rims and reduced grain size between large grains. Quartz (25-30%) forms large, anhedral zones with undulatory and sub-grain extinction. Feldspar also occurs as anhedral zones, but also as finer-grained recrystallized clusters. Microcline (3-30%) is perthitic and plagioclase is weakly sericitized. The rock contains few accessory minerals, mainly epidote and apatite. 

 

Abrat Suite 1a (pPaba1a): Garnet-Bearing Anatectic Granite and Tonalite

The pPaba1a subunit includes areas characterized by large intrusive whitish bodies with paragneiss enclaves located east of the Blumath Shear Zone (blmSZ). These rocks were formerly assigned to the Sukaliuk Complex. Similar to the leucosome bands observed in the Lake Harbour Suite metasedimentary rocks, these rocks are tonalitic or granitic in composition, quartz-rich (30-60%), massive, homogeneous and medium to coarse grained. They contain 2 to 10% biotite schlieren and 1 to 5% garnet. Locally, the pPaba1a subunit may also contain orthopyroxene.

 

 

Thickness and Distribution

The Abrat Suite forms a series of elongated intrusions less than 2 km wide by 1 to 18 km long. It covers an area of ~247 km2 within the Falcoz Lithotectonic Domain. It is more prevalent in the Koroc River and Point Le Droit areas (Mathieu et al., 2018), where metasedimentary sequences of the Lake Harbour Suite are most important. 

Dating

 

A sample from outcrop 1998-PV-1011 was isotopically dated. Monazite crystallization at ~1830 Ma is interpreted as the age for the emplacement of the garnet-bearing granite in the Paleoproterozoic (David et al., 2009).

In the localized area east of the blmSZ, migmatization of the Lake Harbour Suite paragneiss is estimated to be between 1825 ±7 Ma (U-Pb age on monazites) and 1811 ±6 Ma (U-Pb age on zircons; Davis et al., 2018; Charette et al., 2021).

 

 

Unit

Sample Number

Isotopic System

Mineral

Crystallization Age (Ma)

(+)

(-)

Reference(s)

pPaba1

1998-PV-1011A

U-Pb

Monazite

1830

4

4

David et al., 2009

 

Stratigraphic Relationship(s)

 

The whitish intrusions of the Abrat Suite are considered to represent an anatectic granite derived from melting of paragneiss of the Lake Harbour Suite. They are similar to the leucosome observed in the paragneisses; they contain numerous paragneiss enclaves and layers, in which they are emplaced as decimetric to kilometric sills and intrusions.

 

Paleontology

Does not apply.

References

 

Publications available through SIGÉOM Examine

CHARETTE, B., LAFRANCE, I., MATHIEU, G., 2016. Géologie de la région du lac Jeannin, Québec, Canada. MERN; BG 2015-01, 1 plan.

DAVID, J., MAURICE, C., SIMARD, M., 2009. DATATIONS ISOTOPIQUES EFFECTUEES DANS LE NORD-EST DE LA PROVINCE DU SUPERIEUR – TRAVAUX DE 1998, 1999 ET 2000. MRNF; DV 2008-05, 92 pages.

DAVIS, D. W., LAFRANCE, I., GOUTIER, J., BANDYAYERA, D., TALLA TAKAM, F., GIGON, J., 2018. Datations U-Pb dans les provinces de Churchill et du Supérieur effectuées au JSGL en 2013-2014. MERN; RP 2017-01, 63 pages.

LAFRANCE, I., BANDYAYERA, D., BILODEAU, C., 2015. GEOLOGIE DE LA REGION DU LAC HENRIETTA (SNRC 24H). MERN; RG 2015-01, 62 pages, 1 plan.

LAFRANCE, I., BANDYAYERA, D., CHARETTE, B., BILODEAU, C., DAVID, J., 2016. GEOLOGIE DE LA REGION DU LAC BRISSON (SNRC 24A). MERN; RG 2015-05, 64 pages, 1 plan.

LAFRANCE, I., CHARETTE, B., VANIER, M.-A., 2018. Sud-est de la Province de Churchill, Nunavik, Québec, Canada: synthèse de la géologie. MERN; BG 2018-12

LAFRANCE, I., CHARETTE, B., VANIER, M.-A., 2018. Southeastern Churchill Province, Nunavik, Québec, Canada: Geological Synthesis. MERN; BG 2018-12

LAFRANCE, I., SIMARD, M., BANDYAYERA, D., 2014. GEOLOGIE DE LA REGION DU LAC SAFFRAY (SNRC 24F, 24G). MRN; RG 2014-02, 51 pages, 1 plan.

LAFRANCE, I., VANIER, M.-A., 2022. Domaine lithotectonique de Falcoz, sud-est de la Province de Churchill, Nunavik, Québec, Canada : synthèse de la géologie. MERN; BG 2022-01, 2 plans.

LAFRANCE, I., VANIER, M.-A., CHARETTE, B., 2020. Domaine lithotectonique de Baleine, sud-est de la Province de Churchill, Québec, Canada: synthèse de la géologie. MERN; BG 2020-07, 4 plans.

MATHIEU, G., LAFRANCE, I., VANIER, M.-A., 2018. Géologie de la région de pointe Le Droit, Province de Nain et sud-est de la Province de Churchill, Nunavik, Québec, Canada. MERN; BG 2018-07, 4 plans.

MATHIEU, G., LAFRANCE, I., VANIER, M.-A., 2018. Geology of the Pointe Le Droit Region, Southeastern Churchill Province, Nunavik, Québec, Canada. MERN; BG 2018-07, 4 plans.

SIMARD, M., LAFRANCE, I., HAMMOUCHE, H., LEGOUIX, C., 2013. GEOLOGIE DE LA REGION DE KUUJJUAQ ET DE LA BAIE D’UNGAVA (SNRC 24J, 24K). MRN; RG 2013-04, 62 pages, 1 plan.

Other publications

CHARETTE, B., GODET, A., GUILMETTE, C., DAVIS, D.W., VERVOORT, J., KENDALL, B., LAFRANCE, I., BANDYAYERA, D., YAKYMCHUK, C., 2021. Long-lived anatexis in the exhumed middle crust of the Torngat Orogen: Constraints from phase equilibria modeling and garnet, zircon, and monazite geochronology. Lithos; volume 388-389. doi.org/10.1016/j.lithos. 2021.106022

Suggested Citation

Ministère de l’Énergie et des Ressources naturelles (MERN). Abrat Suite. Quebec Stratigraphic Lexicon. https://gq.mines.gouv.qc.ca/lexique-stratigraphique/province-de-churchill/suite-abrat_en [accessed on Day Month Year].

Contributors

First publication

Isabelle Lafrance, P. Geo., M.Sc. isabelle.lafrance@mern.gouv.qc.ca (redaction)

Mehdi A. Guemache, P. Geo., Ph.D. (coordination); anonyme (critical review); Simon Auclair, P. Geo., M.Sc. (editing); Céline Dupuis, P. Geo., Ph.D. (English version); André Tremblay (HTML editing). 

Revision(s)

Isabelle Lafrance, P. Geo., M.Sc. (redaction)

Mehdi A. Guemache, P. Geo., Ph.D. (coordination); Marc-Antoine Vanier, Eng., M.Sc. (critical review); Simon Auclair, P. Geo., M. Sc. (editing); Dominique Richard, GIT, Ph.D. (English version); André Tremblay (HTML editing).

 
12 novembre 2018