Fossilized solidifications fronts in the Bushveld Complex argues for liquid-dominated magmatic systems

Chemical differentiation of magma on Earth occurs through physical separation of liquids and crystals. The mechanisms of this separation still remain elusive due to the lack of information on solidification fronts in plutonic magmatic systems. Here, we present records of fossilized solidification fronts from massive magnetitites of the Bushveld Complex in South Africa, obtained by two-dimensional geochemical mapping on field outcrops. The chemical zoning patterns of solidification fronts indicate that nucleation and crystallization occur directly at the chamber floor and result in near-perfect fractionation due to convective removal of a compositional boundary layer from in situ growing crystals. Our data precludes the existence of thick crystal mushes during the formation of massive magnetitites, thus providing no support for the recent paradigm that envisages only crystal-rich and liquid-poor mushy reservoirs in the Earth’s crust.