Abstract
Samples of fucoid beds collected along the length of the Moine thrust belt show a south to north increase in illite crystallinity which is compatible with previously published results, indicating a temperature variation equivalent to a change of about 100°C. This lateral variation in crystallinity is considered to be related to a combination of lateral downcutting of the Moine thrust and crustal duplication of the Moine sequence with, in the north, emplacement of rocks of lower crustal origin. Such a structure is reflected in the geometry of the Moine outcrop.
Acknowledgements: We thank A.J. Hall, G.J.H. Oliver and especially R. Merriman and D. Robinson for comments on earlier drafts. This study has developed from unpublished work of N. Grant and R. Shuter and we acknowledge with gratitude their contributions to the analytical procedures.
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Allison, I., Ferguson, L.K. (1997). Thermal variations along the Moine thrust zone from illite crystallinity. In: Sengupta, S. (eds) Evolution of Geological Structures in Micro- to Macro-scales. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-5870-1_7
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