GEMOC ARC National Key Centre

GEMOC's international links

Background

GEMOC has strong international links and these broadened through 2006.  Active links include funded projects and substantial collaborative programs in France, Norway, Germany, United Kingdom, Canada, USA, Taiwan, Italy, South Africa, China, Brazil, Japan, Thailand and the former USSR.

EXAMPLES OF PROJECTS IN ASIA

•  terrane analysis and lithosphere structure in southeastern China

•  crust-mantle interaction in southeastern China: the origin of the Yanshanian Granites and erelated rocks

•  crustal evolution and mantle modification in the North China Craton

•  trace element and isotopic characteristics of zircon as indicators of granitoid magma evolution

•  evolution of the lithosphere in northwestern China (Tienshan Mountains in Xinjian)

In the petrified forest at the China University of Geosciences at Wuhan: L-R, Ming Zhang, Sue O'Reilly, Chun-Mei Yu and Jianping Zhang.


•  metallogenesis of southeastern China

•  diamond exploration, tectonism, and geophysics of the lithosphere, Siberia and East Asia

•  mantle terranes, tectonic analysis and interpretation of seismic tomography, Siberia

•  lithosphere extension and geodynamic processes in east Asia (including the Taiwan region and Tibet)

•  terranes and tectonism in the Altaids

FUNDED COLLABORATIVE PROJECTS COMMENCED OR ONGOING IN 2006 INCLUDE:

•  The time scales of magmatic and erosional cycles, with Professor C. Hawkesworth (Bristol University), Dr M. Reagan (University of Iowa) and Dr J. Kirchner (University of California).

•  The nature of lithosphere extension in the Taiwan region and implications for geodynamics in eastern China, with Professor S-L Chung, National University of Taiwan, and Dr Kuo-Lung Wang (Macquarie University Research Fellow).

•  TerraneChron® study to unravel the timing and tectonic history of regions in Tibet was initiated as a collaborative program with the National University of Taiwan, and has expanded to include collaboration with Nanjing University.

•  Collaboration with colleagues at the University of Jean Monnet, St Etienne, including Professor Jean-Yves Cottin and Dr Bertrand Moine (with reciprocal funding from both sides). A formal agreement between the two universities includes PhD exchange, academic exchange and research collaboration relevant to the nature of the lithosphere in the Kerguelen Archipelago, Crozet Islands and the Hoggar region of Algeria. A field trip to Kerguelen was arranged by the France collaborators in 2006 and involved June Chevet, a GEMOC-Jean Monnet co-tutelle PhD student.

Visit to the China University of Geosciences at Wuhan where we negotiated a formal agreement for co-badged PhD programs.

•  The age of the Earth’s core as estimated from 182Hf-182W and 238,235U-206,207Pb chronometers, a collaborative project with Professsor A. Halliday (University of Oxford).

•  Detailed 2-D and 3-D structure of the Kaapvaal Craton in several time slices, using mantle-derived xenocrysts: a collaborative project with De Beers.

•  Trace-element signatures of diamonds, with applications to the origin of diamonds, exploration models and forensics: a collaborative project with Rio Tinto.

•  Global Lithosphere Architecture Mapping, involving analysis of crustal evolution, the composition of the lithospheric mantle and the interpretation of seismic tomography: a collaborative project with WMC and BHP Billiton.

•  Collaboration with Professor Massimo Coltorti and Dr Costanza Bonadiman from the University of Ferrara on the geochemistry of amphiboles, mantle metasomatism, and the age and origin of the lithospheric mantle beneath the Cape Verde Islands. Professor Coltorti, Dr Costanza Bonadiman and Dr Barbara Faccini from the University of Ferrara visited GEMOC in 2006, supported by a European Union Grant. Funding from Italy was obtained for a GEMOC-Ferrara Workshop to be held at the University of Ferrara in 2007.

•  Igneous rocks, mineral deposits, lithosphere structure and tectonic setting: southeastern China and eastern Australia. This collaboration with Nanjing University has expanded from an AusAID grant under the ACILP scheme and sponsored visits to GEMOC by Professors Xisheng Xu, Dr Xiaolei Wang and Dr Hu Xiumian in 2006.

•  Studies with Professor Jianping Zheng (China University of Geosciences, Wuhan) on the evolution of the lithosphere beneath several parts of China, and the UHP metamorphism of Dabie-Sulu peridotites.

Bill Griffin, Simon Shee, Yakov Weiss and Debora Araujo talk diamonds.

•  Studies commenced with Dr Rendeng Shi (University of Science and Technology, Hefei, China) on the age and origin of platinum group alloy phases in podiform chromitites in ophiolites from Tibet.

•  Analysis of off-craton lithospheric mantle in the East Central Asia Orogenic Belt and fundamental studies on the origin of diamonds, with Dr V. Malkovets, Novosibirsk.

•  TerraneChron® analysis of Proterozoic terrains in Africa, North America and Europe, with WMC Resources, BHP-Billiton and several other mineral-exploration companies.

•  Tectonic domains in southern Norway and Mozambique using TerraneChron®‚ with Professor T. Andersen (University of Oslo) and Dr B. Bingen (Norwegian Geological Survey).

•  Age and magma sources of Chilean Cu-porphyries, with Codelco (Chile) and the CSIRO Division of Exploration and Mining (Perth)

•  A new MOU with the United Arab Emirates University was signed off in early 2006, opening the way for funded collaborative projects.

Refer to the Research Program and Postgraduate sections of this Report for details of other projects.

Dr Maitha S. Al-Shams (3rd from left) and Mr Ashraf Shad (left), visited GEMOC from the United Arab Emirates University to formulate collaborative research with GEMOC.

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