The nature of the sub-continental lithospheric mantle beneath Thailand: evidence from xenocrysts in Cenozoic basalts

Shortly after the cessation of the Cenozoic seafloor spreading in the South China Sea, a period of basaltic magmatism occurred in the Indochina Peninsula. The various types of xenoliths/xenocrysts present in these igneous rocks can provide information about the lithospheric mantle under the Indochina Peninsula. In this study, we present new ages and <i>in situ</i> major and trace element compositions for the xenoliths and olivine xenocrysts from the Wichian Buri and Mae Tha basalt flows in Thailand. The new ages obtained in this study for the Wichian Buri and Mae Tha basalt flows are 9.24 and 2.35 Ma, respectively. Under Thailand, the lithology of the sub-continental mantle lithosphere (SCLM) could be spinel-lherzolite, with a mantle temperature range of 936°C–1096°C. The mantle source of the Cenozoic basalts from Thailand and its adjacent regions could be affect by recycled oceanic crust and carbonates. The origin of spongy textures in clinopyroxene should be resulted from partial melting induced by decompression. SCLM under Thailand were transformed by peridotite-melt interaction, and basaltic melt trapped the mantle xenocryst and xenolith quickly ascended to the surface.