1 - Sparks Et Al. 2013 - Review Kimberlite Volcanism

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REVIEWS Further Kimberlite Volcanism
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Annu. Rev. Earth Planet. Sci. 2013. 41:497–528 Keywords

The Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences is kimberlite, volcanology, conduits, pyroclastic rocks
online at earth.annualreviews.org
This article’s doi: Abstract

10.1146/annurev-earth-042711-105252
Kimberlite magmas are volatile-rich, silica-poor ultrabasic magmas origi-
Copyright c 2013 by Annual Reviews. nating as small-degree mantle melts at depths of 150 km or greater. Alter-
All rights reserved
ation and entrained xenoliths obscure their original magma chemistry and
properties. Kimberlite magmas decrease temperature by a few hundred de-
grees during ascent. Changes of melt composition can result as a function
of assimilation. Stalling of kimberlite can result in fractional crystallization,
loss of xenocrysts, and loss of volatiles. Multiple pulses of kimberlite mag-
mas form several distinct geological units in the same pipe or intrusion.
Kimberlite pipes form by explosive disruption and deformation of country
rocks. Confinement in a pipe introduces new processes such as fluidization,
dynamic sintering, and intense mixing between volcanic jets and concen-
trated trapped mixtures. Occurrences of extravent and crater-fill lithofacies
indicate that kimberlite eruptions generate eruptive products that are similar
to those produced by common magma types. Alteration is largely attributed
to hydrothermal systems, diagenesis, and weathering involving external
water.
497
1. INTRODUCTION
Kimberlites are of great interest because they originate from deep in the Earth and host diamonds.
They are distinctive ultrabasic igneous rocks that are found mostly as eroded volcanic pipes and
hypabyssal intrusions emplaced in continental cratons, mostly of Archean age. Kimberlites are
typically dominated by olivine crystals (in most cases, altered to serpentine) set in a fine matrix
containing various combinations of spinel, perovskite, apatite, calcite, phlogopite, diopside, mon-
ticellite, serpentine, as well as more minor and sometimes exotic phases. Kimberlites commonly
contain crustal and mantle-derived xenoliths and xenocrysts, including olivine, garnet, spinel, Cr-
diopside, phlogopite, and diamond. Rock types include many varieties of volcaniclastic rocks as
well as dikes, sills, and rare lavas. They have been divided into Group I and Group II types on the
basis of petrographic and geochemical characteristics (Mitchell 1995, Becker & Le Roex 2006):
Abundant phlogopite and high radiogenic 87 Sr characterize Group II kimberlites.
There is a vast literature on kimberlites. Seminal books by Mitchell (1986, 1995) provide a
starting point for the novice. Ten kimberlite conferences, held every four years, have spawned
voluminous proceedings. Synthesizing all this knowledge into a review would be a herculean
undertaking. Therefore, this review focuses on some topical issues and long-standing problems
that arise because of the complexity of kimberlitic rocks. The pristine composition of kimberlite
magmas remains elusive. Magma chemistry and properties, such as temperature, oxidation state,
melt compositions, phase equilibria, viscosity, density, and volatile inventories, are still not well
understood. Likewise the nature of the emplacement processes is hard to unravel, and the extent
to which kimberlite mineralogy is the result of secondary alteration is contentious.
Approximately 10 years ago, significantly more researchers with backgrounds in volcanology
became interested in kimberlite geology and petrology. A major motivation was the finding that
kimberlites enable study of the processes in volcanic conduits, exposed in great detail by mining and
drilling operations. Since Sparks et al. (2006) published a review of kimberlite volcanology, many
subsequent papers have developed or contested their ideas. Other relatively recent influences
on research have been the discovery and documentation of kimberlite pipes outside southern
Africa, especially in Canada. Some of these kimberlites exhibit different characteristics and have
stimulated new ideas.
This review considers several interrelated topics: the generation and nature of kimberlite mag-
mas; the abundance of volatiles; processes during magma ascent; geological relationships in kim-
berlite pipes; the explosive volcanic processes that form different kinds of kimberlite volcaniclas-
tic rocks; and the effects of alteration. The focus here is on observations made within geology,
petrology, and geochemistry, complemented by the constraints of our modern understanding of
the physics, petrology, and geochemistry of volcanic and igneous processes. Readers interested
in economic aspects of kimberlites are referred to Field et al. (2008) and Gurney et al. (2010).
Advances in volcanology are summarized in Cashman & Sparks (2013).
2. MAGMA GENERATION AND IGNEOUS PROCESSES
2.1. Generation in the Deep Mantle

The conditions under which kimberlite is generated in the mantle can be constrained from:
experimental studies; geochemistry; and studies of xenoliths, xenocrysts, and their inclusions.
Some difficulties, discussed more fully below, are that kimberlite magmas are likely changed
profoundly as they ascend, are erupted or emplaced, and are altered in near-surface environments.
However, despite these ambiguities, there is some consensus. Kimberlites must be very-low-degree
498 Sparks
2,000
s
idu
sol cpx Calcium
ite
er zol clinopyroxene
e lh dmt Dolomite
-fre
1,800 CO 2 gt Garnet
erlite lht Lherzolite
sp lht + tiit
e Kimb mst Magnesite
ma
CO2-bearing Ko ol Olivine
melt opx Orthopyroxene
1,600
ol + opx + cpxx + gt +
pl Plagioclase
Temperature (°C)
CO2-bearing
-bearin
bearing
ng melt
itite sp Spinel
Melil
pl lht +
CO2-bearing ite
cr
Pi
ite lidus
melt sal
t onat te so
1,400 Ba Carb g lh erzoli
bearin
-
onate
Carb
gt lht + I2A
sp lht + CO2
CO2
1,200 vapor I
1A
vapor
pl lht + gt lht + gt lht + mst
CO2 dmt
vapor
1,000
0 2 4 6 8
Pressure (GPa)
Figure 1
Generalized pressure-temperature phase diagram in the CMAS-CO2 system, showing experimental constraints on the generation of
kimberlite and carbonatite melts in carbonated mantle (after Dalton & Presnall 1998, Gudfinnsson & Presnall 2005, Dasgupta &
Hirschmann 2006). Illustration courtesy of Iris Buisman.
mantle melts to account for their silica-deficient character and high incompatible trace element
contents. They originate at depths sufficiently great to stabilize diamond and to have reached
temperatures above the volatile-enriched mantle solidus. These expectations are supported by
studies of entrained mantle nodules that allow estimates of geotherms and minimum temperatures
and pressures. Depths in excess of 150 km and temperatures at the base of the lithosphere of
1,350 to 1,450◦ C are indicated (Priestly et al. 2006). Trace element and isotope data indicate
that Group I kimberlites originate from subcontinental lithospheric or deeper asthenospheric
mantle enriched by an ocean island basalt source, whereas Group II kimberlites are derived from
a metasomatized lithospheric mantle (Becker & Le Roex 2006).
Experimental studies at high pressures and temperatures in simplified mantle systems constrain
kimberlite petrogenesis (e.g., Wyllie & Huang 1975, Dalton & Presnall 1998, Gudfinnsson &
Presnall 2005, Dasgupta & Hirschmann 2006). Carbonated mantle (CMAS-CO2 ) at high pressure
initially yields carbonatite as very-low-degree melts at the solidus (Figure 1). As temperature
increases, the amount of melt remains very small. At 200 to 300◦ C above the solidus, kimberlite-
like melts containing significant silica are generated. Thus, kimberlitic melts require temperatures
of 1,500◦ C or more in simplified experimental systems (Figure 1). Addition of other components,
such as Fe, alkalis, and water, to these experimental systems, however, may reduce the solidus
and the temperatures at which kimberlitic melts can be generated by at least 100◦ C (Gaetani &
Grove 1998); such conditions are more consistent with the estimates of temperatures at the base
of the continental lithosphere. An unresolved conundrum is that kimberlitic melts, transitional
www.annualreviews.org • Kimberlite Volcanism 499

Kimberlite
c b
Kimberlite
field
Carbonatite melts field
40
Silicate melts
CO2 (wt%)
30
Carbonatite melts
2,5
0
20 1,5 0 M
0 P
50 0 a
0
20
0
Opx assimilation 10
100
(rapid and preferential)
CO2 solubility
0
0 20 40 60
SiO2 + Al2O3 (wt%)
CO2 (wt%)
10 –1 10 0 10 1
0 Silicate melts
OLIVINE SATURATION
Carbonatites
Un
Si-
0.5
de
sat
Pressure (GPa)
rsa
ura
1.0 CO2
tur
ted
Kimberlites?
i berr ites??
exsolution
ate
(chemically
d
1.5
driven)
K
2.0
a
0 ~18–32
SiO2 (wt%)
Figure 2
CO2 solubilities in silicic to carbonatitic melts (after Brooker et al. 2011 and Russell et al. 2012). (a) CO2
solubility limits for silica-saturated and undersaturated melts and hypothetical solubilities of carbonatite and
kimberlite melt. (b) Pressure and composition dependence of CO2 solubility across the carbonate-silicate
transition. Note the effects of pressure (numbers on lines, MPa) on CO2 solubility are limited compared
with those of composition (SiO2 and Al2 O3 ). (c) Schematic model (Russell et al. 2012) of assimilation-
induced fluid exsolution of carbonatite and proto-kimberlite melts. Orthopyroxene (Opx) assimilation drives
nonsilicate melts (left-hand side) to more silicic compositions (right-hand side), causing a decrease in CO2
solubility and exsolution of a fluid phase. Continued assimilation and exsolution during ascent generates a
kimberlite melt. Illustration courtesy of K. Russell and L. Porritt.
in silica content between carbonatites and basalts, are produced over a narrow temperature range
during progressive partial melting of CMAS mantle analogues (e.g., Moore & Wood 1998). Other
components, such as water, K, and P, may be responsible for producing the range of temperatures
over which kimberlite melts appear to form.
Russell et al. (2012) proposed that the primary source magma is carbonatite and that kimberlite
magmas are generated by assimilation of orthopyroxene during ascent (Figure 2). The dissolu-
tion reaction into carbonatite decarbonates the magma to liberate CO2 while the melts become
progressively enriched in silica and magnesia. This model is supported by experiments (Brey et al.
1991, Brooker et al. 2011) that show a marked decrease of CO2 solubility as silica is added to car-
bonatite melts. This model helps explain the common absence of orthopyroxene xenocrysts. Even
though abundant olivine xenocrysts are typically found in kimberlites, they are usually assumed
500 Sparks
to be derived from disaggregation of depleted (harzburgite) mantle xenocrysts. Orthopyroxene

showing dissolution textures related to reaction with carbonatitic kimberlite occurs in some intru-
sions (e.g., White et al. 2012). Alternative explanations of orthopyroxene absence are that olivine
xenocrysts originate from the disruption of dunite xenoliths rather than harzburgite (Arndt et al.
2010) and that orthopyroxene is unstable in water-rich kimberlite melts (Mitchell 2008).
2.2. Magma Ascent

Recent discussions of kimberlite ascent (Lensky et al. 2006; Wilson & Head 2007a,b; Sparks et al.
2007; Kavanagh & Sparks 2009; Russell et al. 2012) have centered on the changes of magma prop-
erties and on the role of volatile exsolution in triggering and driving magma ascent. Kimberlite vol-
canism is clustered in space and time (Field et al. 2008). For example many of the southern African
kimberlites have Jurassic and Cretaceous ages and form clusters aligned along major structural
features. These features can be explained by tectonic triggering mechanisms as discussed below.
One of the less well understood aspects of magma physics concerns how partial melts segregate
into significant bodies of melt and then create conditions that trigger magma ascent. Factors that
likely influence conditions that favor kimberlite magma ascent include: rate of melting; flow of
melt through the crystalline mantle matrix driven by buoyancy or tectonic shear; pressure and
buoyancy in locally segregated magma bodies in the source region; and tectonic stress state in, and
strength of, the surrounding mantle. Two end-member hypotheses to explain spatial and temporal
clustering are that kimberlite melts (a) are generated in pulses in response to mantle dynamics,
such as ascent of a deep mantle plume, or (b) are generated continuously but special conditions,
such as craton deformation, provide the trigger for ascent. Torsvik et al. (2010), for example, have
suggested that kimberlites are preferentially related to old continental cratons that overlie stable
mantle plume sources at the core-mantle boundary. These are complex topics for all magma types
and a comprehensive discussion is beyond the scope of this review. Here, the starting point is that
bodies of kimberlite or parental carbonatite are formed in the source region and that a dike is
nucleated to enable kimberlite ascent.
A prominent feature of many kimberlites is the entrainment of mantle xenoliths and xenocrysts,
derived from a range of depths down to near the base of the lithosphere. These features have been
interpreted to indicate highly disruptive magma dynamics in which surrounding mantle rocks are
fragmented by brittle mechanisms, suggesting very dynamic environments associated with large
excess pressures. Lensky et al. (2006) proposed that a burst of bubble nucleation of kimberlite
melts supersaturated in CO2 can generate very high pressures that fragment mantle host rock and
that this catastrophic failure initiates magma ascent. Experimental studies (Lensky et al. 2006) on
mafic alkaline melts at 1.5 GPa indicate the possibility of supersaturations of 100 to 300 MPa,
more than enough for brittle failure. Wilson & Head (2007a) presented a dynamic view of the role
of exsolving volatiles in which CO2 is released into the dike tip and generates pressures estimated
by them to be approximately 70 MPa. The excess pressure gradient along the dike from source to
tip is calculated to be tens of times greater than in basaltic eruptions and leads to ascent speeds of
tens of meters per second. This model has been criticized on a number of grounds (for a discussion
and reply, see Sparks et al. 2007, Wilson & Head 2007b). Perhaps the most significant problem is
experimental evidence (Menand & Tait 2001) indicating that volatiles that segregate from magma
into the propagating dikes move ahead of the magma as a result of the much greater buoyancy of
the volatiles. Field evidence (Brown et al. 2007) has indicated that volatiles arrive in the shallow
crust well before the kimberlite arrives. By contrast, Menand & Tait (2001) used the model of
gas segregation to explain precursory activity in basaltic eruptions. The model by Wilson & Head
(2007a) invokes low pressures in the gas-filled dike tip, whereas an alternative model assumes very

0 0
a
20 Weight fraction
0.05 H2O 0.1 H2O
40 0.05 CO2 0.1 CO2
1.5
0.05 H2O + 0.05 CO2
60
0.1 H2O + 0.1 CO2
Pressure (GPa)
80
Depth (km)
0
b
100 1 3.0
Depth (km)
120 2
140 3
4.5
4
160
5
180 1,000 1,100 1,200 1,300
Temperature (°C)
200 6.0
0.75 0.80 0.85 0.90 0.95 1.00
T/T0
Figure 3
(a) Example of calculated large temperature variations in ascending kimberlite (after Kavanagh & Sparks
2009); plot is a reproduction of supplementary figure A3 in Kavanagh & Sparks (2009). Temperature-depth
profile from a 200-km depth of adiabatically ascending analogue kimberlite magma exsolving a range of
volatiles (as noted in the legend). Temperature changes due to 30% total lithospheric incorporation
(constant rate), olivine assimilation, and crystallization are included. The abrupt change in slope seen in the
profiles from a decreasing to an increasing temperature represents the onset of olivine crystallization with
latent heat release. Also note the marked decrease in temperature at very low pressures where volatile
exsolution and adiabatic expansion cause cooling. Temperatures are normalized to the source temperature
T0 = 1,450◦ C. (b) Zoomed section. Eruption temperatures range from ∼1,050 to 1,250◦ C, and magmas
exsolving higher amounts of volatiles have lower eruption temperatures.
high gas pressures were induced by buoyancy forces that propagate a gas-filled crack in front of
the magma. Russell et al. (2012) invoked continual generation of CO2 during ascent as a result of
orthopyroxene assimilation. If this CO2 segregates to the dike tip, then high excess pressures can
help explain the breakup of the mantle to form xenoliths.
Profound changes in physicochemical conditions and magma properties are expected when
kimberlite magmas decompress during ascent and are either emplaced in near-surface hypabyssal
intrusions or erupt. These changes likely include entrainment of crustal and mantle xenoliths,
resorption of the xenocryst cargo, crystallization induced by cooling and degassing, and changes of
oxidation state. A thermodynamical model of kimberlite magma ascent (Kavanagh & Sparks 2009)
considered four different magma compositions: a basalt, a carbonatite, and two proposed analogies
for kimberlite magmas. Adiabatic expansion of the melt phase during ascent from a depth of 200 km
can account for 90 to 140◦ C cooling. Adiabatic expansion of exsolved volatiles and entrainment
of xenoliths provide significant additional cooling, but this is counteracted at low pressures by
crystallization (principally of olivine phenocrysts) with liberation of latent heat (Figure 3).
Kimberlite magma temperatures decrease during ascent up to the onset of rapid pressure-
induced olivine crystallization (Figure 3). The models calculate that little olivine assimilation
occurs during kimberlite ascent (a few percent), and this implies the magma composition is set
at depth and is not acquired via olivine dissolution. However, orthopyroxene assimilation with
502 Sparks
coprecipitation of olivine may be more effective as proposed by Russell et al. (2012), who infer
that liberation of CO2 takes place as orthopyroxene is dissolved and that this increases magma
buoyancy to enhance ascent rates. Latent heat due to predominantly olivine crystallization in
the later stages of transport release counteracts cooling mechanisms, such as gas exsolution and
entrainment of crustal and mantle xenoliths, and in this regime, the magma temperature increases
as the pressure decreases (Figure 3). At shallow levels, gas exsolution and expansion become
dominant processes and the magma temperature cools markedly during the final stages of ascent
(Figure 3). The models yield shallow magma temperatures 200 to 400◦ C lower than the starting
temperature in the source region when the volatile content of the ascending kimberlite magma is
less than 10 wt% H2 O. These results are consistent with temperature estimates of 1,030–1,170◦ C
from geothermometry studies (Fedortchouk & Canil 2004).
The magma ascent velocity (v), calculated at several meters per second (Sparks et al. 2006)
from dike propagation theory (Lister & Kerr 1991), suggests ascent times of several hours from
the base of the lithosphere. This is consistent with estimates from geospeedometers (Canil &
Fedortchouk 1999, Kelley & Wartho 2000) and transport of mantle xenoliths that are tens of
centimeters (Spera 1984, Spence & Turcotte 1990). Magmas can accelerate to speeds of a few tens
of meters per second close to the surface in response to volatile exsolution and then exit the vent
into the atmosphere at hundreds of meters per second in explosive eruptions. Russell et al. (2012)
proposed that kimberlite magma buoyancy (a function of the density contrast between magma
and host rock ρ) is enhanced by the generation of CO2 by dissolution of orthopyroxene into
kimberlite magma during ascent (noting that v ∝ ρ 4/7 ). Sparks et al. (2006) calculated v of 2.9
to 16.8 m s−1 based on density contrasts of 100 to 300 kg m−3 . CO2 fluid has a density of 1,200 kg
m−3 at 2 GPa, so progressive exsolution of CO2 due to orthopyroxene dissolution will increase
the likely range of density contrasts and so can extend the range of expected ascent speeds to even
higher values.
2.3. Magmatic Volatiles

It is generally assumed that kimberlites are volatile rich, but very little evidence helps constrain
what the actual volatile contents are. The methods used to estimate primary volatile contents in
other magmas (e.g., directly from gas emissions from active volcanoes, melt inclusions, mineral as-
semblages) are not possible for kimberlites or are difficult to apply. Direct evidence for CO2 comes
from occurrence of igneous carbonate in some kimberlite intrusions and rare lavas, and from phlog-
opite indicating presence of water (literature reviewed in Sparks et al. 2006). Although kimberlites
commonly contain high water and CO2 contents, these cannot be taken as primary magmatic
volatile contents because they may be of secondary origin (see Section 4 for further discussion).
Experimental studies of possible kimberlite compositions at a variety of water, CO2 , and mixed
water-CO2 mixtures at modest pressures give ambiguous results in terms of reproducing primary
mineral assemblages to help constrain volatile contents (Sparks et al. 2009, Brooker et al. 2011).
2.4. Intrusion, Differentiation, Multiple Magma Pulses,

Magma Mixing, and Assimilation
Shallow-level differentiated kimberlite sills include the Wesselton sills and Benfontein sills in Kim-
berley district, South Africa, and the Snap Lake sill, Northwest Territories, Canada. These sills
provide evidence of in situ differentiation, multiple pulses of different composition magmas, and
magma mixing. Stalling of kimberlite at greater depths than these examples seems highly plausible.
For example, the Igwisi Hills kimberlite stalled in the mantle lithosphere with thermal equilibra-
tion and incorporation of mantle xenocrysts and xenoliths (Dawson 1994, Brown et al. 2012).

Stalling may result in fractional crystallization, loss or gain of xenocrysts, and loss of volatiles.
Thus, a wide variety of differentiated kimberlite magmas could form. Examples of differentiated
compositions include the Wesselton sills, which trend toward carbonatites (White et al. 2012),
whereas the Benfontein sills display in situ differentiation in thin sills (Dawson & Hawthorne 1973).
Multiple pulses of kimberlite magmas can form separate geological units or mix during ascent,
intrusion, and eruption. Evidence for multiple magma batches can be recognized from distinctive
geology with sharp internal contacts between different rock types (Figure 4), geochemistry, and
disequilibrium mineral assemblages. Such features are common in kimberlite intrusions and pipes.
Magma mixing can be recognized by diagnostic features (Anderson 1976), such as disequilibrium
mineral assemblages, bimodal mineral compositions, both reversed and normally zoned crystals,
and small-scale textural heterogeneities. Examples include Snap Lake (Gernon et al. 2012b), AK6
in Orapa district, du Toitspan (Ogilvie-Harris et al. 2009), Wesselton sills (White et al. 2012), and
Orapa (Sarkar et al. 2011). Flow differentiation of suspended crystals during intrusion has also been
proposed (Zurevinski & Mitchell 2011). Geological evidence for multiple pulses is inconsistent
with the idea that kimberlite eruptions are single-event dramatic explosions.
Assimilation of mantle and crust is manifest through geochemical characteristics, and many
suspended crystals in kimberlites are xenocrysts (Mitchell 2008, Arndt et al. 2010). In many cases,
contamination by crust or xenocrystic origin of suspended crystals is clear cut (e.g., Caro et al. 2004,
Patterson et al. 2009). There is, however, some ambiguity about the interpretation of euhedral
olivines, which have been typically interpreted as phenocrysts. Brett et al. (2009) and Arndt et al.
(2010), however, demonstrated that some crystals originate as neoblastic xenocrysts, released
when recrystallized mantle xenoliths break up. Detailed studies of mineral chemistry in the sparse
examples of kimberlites with fresh olivine are needed to distinguish neoblastic xenocrysts from
genuine phenocrysts. These findings cast doubt on the widely held view (Clement 1982, Scott
Smith 1996, Harris et al. 2004, Mitchell 2008) that kimberlites are commonly approximately equal
mixtures of xenocrysts and phenocrysts.
2.5. Near-Surface Kimberlite Magmas and Melts

The behavior of kimberlite magmas in near-surface environments (shallow intrusions and erup-
tions) remains enigmatic. Specifically, mineral alteration and suspended xenocrysts provide bar-
riers to interpretation. Sparks et al. (2009) proposed, on the basis of textural observations and
chemical mass balance considerations, that alteration (principally serpentinization) takes place at
approximately constant volume in an open system, resulting in enrichment in MgO and SiO2
and decreasing MgO/SiO2 ratios. Serpentine replaces olivine crystals, whereas in the groundmass
other phases are replaced, notably calcic phases such as calcite and apatite (Figure 5). Whole-rock
compositions of aphanitic hypabyssal kimberlites (e.g., Price et al. 2000) and estimates of primitive
melt compositions based on geochemistry (e.g., Le Roex et al. 2003) have high SiO2 and MgO
contents, typically greater than 30 and 35%, respectively, but when alteration is taken into ac-
count, these values decrease markedly. Reconstructed compositions of kimberlite melts are lower
in silica (<25%) and MgO (<20%) than have hitherto been supposed; they can also approach
carbonatite compositions (Sparks et al. 2009).
Attempts to constrain kimberlite melt compositions via experiments on natural and recon-
structed compositions have met with only limited success. Experiments have been conducted at
100 and 200 MPa; at temperatures of 1,100 to 1,275◦ C; and with excess CO2 , H2 O, and CO2 -H2 O
mixtures (Sparks et al. 2009, Brooker et al. 2011). The findings from such experiments show that
previously proposed compositions cannot be pure melts under eruptive conditions, providing
strong support for the view that the altered rock compositions do not represent natural kimberlite
504 Sparks
N 20 m 40 m 60 m S
EA41CH19-Sparks
Basement host rock

ARI
Olivine-poor kimberlite
Olivine-rich kimberlite
Horizontal
Olivine in clusters
Olivine crystals
19 April 2013
Area of olivine Lithic rafts

macrocrysts (%)
0 20 40 60% 0 20 40 60 % 0 20 40 60 % 0 20 40 60% 0 20 40 60 % 0 20 40 60% 0 20 40 60%
17:2
3.0
+
2.5
Olivine 34
18 in clusters 24.6
2.0
+
+
15.7 A
+
+
No fabric
+
1.5 1-m-diameter
18 41 24 observed
Moderate to strong A Well-developed
+
lithic rafts 17.5 Moderate vertical

vertical fabric (olivine) fabric (olivine) vertical fabric
102
Vertical B 27 17.8
1.0
Thickness (m)
47 21 fabric 56 28 16.4
45 33 23 15.6
56 18.4 57 19.5
31.4 31
+
0.5
B 300
29.8
0 96
20
Olivine sizes (mm)
10 25 Long-axis length
50 100 of largest
20% 20% 20%
olivine crystals
10% 10% 10%
A A
Mean of
five largest
Olivine long-axis length (mm): 0–5
olivine crystals
5–10
N = 100 at each
www.annualreviews.org • Kimberlite Volcanism

Mantle xenolith: 10–20
measurement locality 20%
maximum observed 20% 20–50
long-axis length 10% 10%
505
B 50–500 B
Figure 4
Schematic contact of the internal structure of the Snap Lake intrusion, Northwest Territories, Canada, showing evidence of multiple intrusions from internal contacts
between olivine-rich and olivine-poor kimberlite as demonstrated by profiles of modal abundances and grain size of macrocrysts. Near-vertical fabrics of elongate olivine
are distinctive characteristics of this intrusion and are illustrated by the rose diagram of elongation direction. Diagram after Gernon et al. (2012b).
S1
Sm
Sm
Ph
Ca
Ca
S2 Ap Sp
P
100 μm
Figure 5
Backscattered scanning electron microscopy images of the serpentinization process (after Sparks et al. 2009).
The image shows serpentine pseudomorphs after olivine (S2) in an aphanitic kimberlite sill from Wesselton,
Kimberley district, South Africa, are surrounded by a clear zone of serpentine (S1) replacing high Sr and Ba
igneous calcite (Ca), while apatite (Ap) and phlogopite (Ph) have been replaced to a lesser extent. Other
groundmass phases include perovskite (P), spinel (Sp), and smectite after phlogopite (Sm). The olivine
pseudomorph contains euhedral but corroded calcite crystals. The bulk rock composition is significantly
changed with relative increases in Mg and Si and decreases in Ca and CO2 due principally to the
replacement of calcite by serpentine in the groundmass. In this example, the SiO2 , MgO, and CaO contents
of the reconstructed composition are 17.3, 20.3, and 25.4% (volatile free basis), respectively, whereas the
altered rock has SiO2 , MgO, and CaO contents of 26.0, 23.6, and 14.7%, respectively.
melt compositions. Their SiO2 - and MgO-rich characteristics lead to very high liquidus temper-
atures (>1,350◦ C), inconsistent with estimated kimberlite eruption temperatures (<1,200◦ C).
Reconstructed compositions perform somewhat better with reduced (but still >1,250◦ C) liquidus
temperatures, and some of the typical groundmass kimberlite minerals, notably olivine, monticel-
lite, and spinel, are produced. However, these experiments yield calcium silicate melts (Figure 6),
rather than trending toward carbonatite residua as suggested by some natural rock suites.
These results pose some intriguing issues. First, the experimentally reconstructed compositions
may not be correct because untested assumptions made to remove the effects of alteration (e.g., on
what original minerals were present and in what proportions and on the openness of the alteration
system) significantly influence the estimated composition. Second, kimberlite residual melts may
have highly reactive calcium silicate compositions. This second possibility is considered further
(see below) in considering evidence for the original presence of glass in kimberlite pyroclastic
rocks and the origin of groundmass serpentine.
An important issue concerns the rheological properties of kimberlite melts and magmas. There
is evidence for both very low and very high viscosities. High-temperature volatile-rich melts of
carbonatite and kimberlite are expected to have very low viscosities (Dobson et al. 1996). On the
basis of a survey of relevant literature, Sparks et al. (2006) suggested the range for kimberlite
melts of 0.1 to 1 Pa s. Textural observations provide support for very low viscosities of the melt
phase, notably the formation of very thin melt rims around lithics and crystals (Moss & Russell
2011, Gernon et al. 2012a) and the facility with which hot volcaniclastic kimberlite is sometimes
506 Sparks
Experiments with fluid at 100 MPa

SiO2
ak Ankermite J Jericho kimberlite composition
crys Cristobalite LR Le Roux kimberlite composition
di Diopside WR Wesselton reconstructed composition
fo Fosterite
2 liquids
ln Larnite
mo Monticellite
mrw Merwinite
opx Orthopyroxene
crys
wol Wollastonite
opx
wol di
ak 1366 fo
mrw
ln mo
LR Fosterite (or olivine)

1516
J
Periclase
WR
Lime Periclase (or spinel)

CaO MgO
(+ FeO)
Figure 6
SiO2 -CaO-MgO ternary with phase boundaries for 1-bar volatile free. FeO has been combined with MgO
and the SiO2 -CaO-MgO-FeO components recalibrated after the other minor components have been
removed to produce the experimental 100-MPa volatile-bearing melt compositions depicted in this
pseudoternary. The three experimental melt compositions (LR, J, and WR) are shown. The dominant trends
of olivine crystallization for J and LR and the spinel/periclase crystallization for WR are shown schematically
for reference (after Sparks et al. 2009).
reconstituted into dense coherent welded rocks (Brown et al. 2008a). However, other observations
also suggest that kimberlites can have quite high viscosities at or near Earth’s surface. Absence
of olivine settling in the Snap Lake intrusion enabled Gernon et al. (2012b) to estimate magma
viscosities of 103 to 104 Pa s. Likewise, Brown et al. (2012) estimated from lack of olivine settling
and lava morphology a viscosity of approximately 103 Pa s or more for the Igwisi Hills kimberlite
lavas. These contrasting estimates are not mutually inconsistent. As now widely recognized in
volcanology, degassing of volatile-rich magmas during eruption and shallow intrusion can spon-
taneously trigger groundmass crystallization. Very large increases in viscosity occur, and at high
enough crystal contents, strongly non-Newtonian rheology can develop (Sparks & Pinkerton
1978, Cashman 1992, Castrucchio et al. 2010).
3. KIMBERLITE ERUPTIONS
Understanding the eruptive processes responsible for kimberlite volcanism is challenging because
no eruptions have been witnessed, extravent surface volcanic deposits are not usually preserved, and
alteration and lithification have either modified or eradicated the primary structures and textures.
In addition, much information on kimberlite geology has to be inferred from 1D bore hole samples.

Consequently, inferences about processes have sometimes proved to be ambiguous or contentious.

The basic descriptive geological model for kimberlites, synthesized by Hawthorne (1975), consists
of crater, pipe, and root zones. This conceptual model, subsequently modified (e.g., Field & Scott
Smith 1999), is an idealized and simplified construction in which many complexities, deviations,
and exceptions have not been included. Each kimberlite needs to be considered on its own merits.
Nonetheless, the model remains a useful framework, provided that it does not impede thinking
and that geological evidence remains preeminent. Hypabyssal intrusions are also widespread both
closely linked to pipes and as intrusions unrelated to known pipes (Mitchell 2008).
Well-documented and peer-reviewed geological data and interpretations of kimberlite pipes
have appeared over the past decade. Here some prominent issues and debates are discussed.
3.1. Pipe Formation

Pipe formation is a destructive process in which a deep cavity is formed in the upper crust connected
to Earth’s surface. Pipes are typically downward-tapering structures ranging from a few hundred
to a few thousand square meters in cross section (Field et al. 2008). Drilling and mining together
with estimates of erosion level indicate that such structures originally had depths in the range
of 1 to 3 km. Cross sections range from near circular to elongate and are quite complex, with
boundaries influenced by geological structures (Kurszlaukis & Barnett 2003, Brown et al. 2008c).
Contacts between the kimberlite and country rocks are commonly very steep, with typical angles
ranging from 75o to vertical, and locally, some contacts may even overhang wall rocks (Figure 7).
The formation of volcanic pipes requires the disruption, fragmentation, and removal of sig-
nificant amounts of host rock to create the necessary space. Explosive processes must be involved
because a pipe geometry cannot be created by elastic deformation. Magma transport and eruption
must be governed by dike emplacement within brittle crust (Spence & Turcotte 1990). Dike em-
placement involves interactions of magma pressure, tectonic stress, and the influence of preexisting
structures. The Venetia kimberlite, South Africa, is an example of localization along basement
structures, which have facilitated magma ascent (Kurszlaukis & Barnett 2003). Barnett et al. (2013)
showed that the location of kimberlites in the Kimberley district is preferentially favored by low
horizontal mean stress due to the interaction of tectonic stresses with local structures. Commonly,
kimberlite dikes intrude their own fracture systems developed in response to tectonic stresses (e.g.,
Basson & Viola 2003, Barnett et al. 2013). Jogs along segmented dike systems show complex de-
formation and local brecciation (Kavanagh & Sparks 2011) and provide places favorable to pipe
formation (Brown et al. 2007), because the host rock is already disrupted (i.e., preconditioned).
High magma pressures can be inferred from the structures in kimberlite intrusions, such as injec-
tion of magma into preexisting wall rock fractures at high angles to dikes and sills (Gernon et al.
2012a, White et al. 2012).
A popular model envisages that explosions initiate pipe formation at the surface (Figure 8),
which then widens and deepens. Often, early stages of volcanic eruptions involve phreatic and then
phreatomagmatic eruptions caused by an interaction of rising magma with groundwater that, when
heated in confined environments, causes large overpressures. In this model, the pipe cavity grows
−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−→
Figure 7
Map of the Venetia kimberlite cluster, South Africa, showing the surface geology of the K2 pipe (after Brown et al. 2008c). (a) The
Venetia kimberlite pipe cluster. (b) Surface geology of the K2 pipe reconstructed from mine bench maps. (Inset) Stereographs show
lithic clast a-b planes at the pipe margins. (c) Pipe cross sections at 120-m depth intervals. (d ) Geological cross section of the K2 pipe
inferred from drill core logs and surface geology.
508 Sparks
K3 a b
K8
K2 K5
K4 n = 26
200 m K7 K1
K6 4
c
K2
K2 East
West 38
5 K2
East 44
96 m 6
240 m 64
NW Section in
extension 36
7 panel d
K2 8
West
46
360 m 480 m
48 50
48
n = 22
100 m 720 m 100 m

600 m
d Massive volcaniclastic kimberlite

2 5
H1 Matrix-supported volcaniclastic
DD
99 RDH001 kimberlite breccias
DDH1 H03
0
DDH168 DD Massive-to-layered volcaniclastic
100
kimberlite
Country rock breccias
Breccia DDH124
lobes Country rock megablock
Meters below surface
? Country Kimberlite dike

rock
4 Bench number (12 m thick)
200
Bench crest Bench toe
DD
H12
7 Stereograms show lineations of clast long axes
Zimbabwe
? Namibia
DDH221 Botswana Venetia
300 ?
Country
rock South
Africa
West East 600 km

Explosive breakthrough of magma to surface Emplacement of K2 West
a b
Explosive
cratering
Y
Youngg
cover
Failure
Failure of
o
piip
pipe
pe walls
p w
Pipe grows from
top downward via
explosive widening Failure

ure of
and deepening, pipe
ip
pe walls
w
Eruption of
and via tensile
juvenile pyro-
failure of the pipe clasts and
Breccia
Breccia
cci forms
fo
or
Rising
via
via inwar
inward
inward re-entrainment
kimberlite of fragments
magma dipping
dipp
ip
pping
mKBr/cKBr/VK
M am ph c
Metamorphic
basement
ba e
W E
Emplacement of K2 East Post eruption
c d
MVK
Late-stage
eruption K2 East
blasts through K2 West
K2 West to
form the
K2 East pipe ~500 m Intrusion of
kimberlite magma
as thin dikes
along the margins
of the pipe
510 Sparks
from the top downward, and for kimberlite, this initial phreatic and phreatomagmatic stage is
captured in the conceptual model presented by Kurszlaukis & Lorenz (2008). The alternative idea
of preconditioning of the crust to form an embryonic pipe can be traced back to Clement & Reid
(1989) and has received recent support from the study of the KO8 kimberlite at Venetia, South
Africa (Barnett et al. 2011). In this case, the early intrusion of kimberlite or kimberlite-related
volatiles fragments the crust in situ. This disrupted volume then expands and moves toward the
surface. As a result of eruptions caused either by the interaction of rising magma with groundwater
as proposed by Kurszlaukis & Lorenz (2008) or by explosions of volatile-rich kimberlite, the crust
is broken up and then the fragmented material is ejected to form a pipe. As envisaged by Clement &
Reid (1989), a breccia column forms from the bottom upward; then, the pipe forms by downward
excavation of this column once there is a break through to the surface. Despite their differences,
these models are not mutually exclusive.
Views of catastrophic kimberlite pipe formation include the verneshot concept (Phipps Morgan
et al. 2004) and the proposals by Wilson & Head (2007a). Phipps Morgan et al. (2004) summarized
the literature on catastrophic kimberlite emplacement models. In such models, extreme magma
ascent rates are invoked and explosive discharges are catastrophic, blowing out the pipe in single
events. However, no evidence supports the extreme and exceptional conditions invoked. Many fea-
tures of kimberlites can be readily explained by reasonably well understood processes encountered
in other kinds of volcanic system. Kimberlite geology indicates multistage events (Sparks et al.
2006, 2007; Brown et al. 2008c; Porritt & Cas 2009). In addition, some kimberlites show unequiv-
ocal evidence of being formed by very mild, low-intensity volcanic activity (Brown et al. 2012).
An early phase of crater and pipe development through phreatic and phreatomagmatic ex-
plosions is reasonable (Lorenz 1975, Lorenz & Kurszlaukis 2007) and consistent with other
kinds of volcanism. However, it is not the only option. Deep tapering volcanic conduits form
in many magmatic explosive eruptions with no evidence for a role of external water. In high-
intensity explosive eruptions of intermediate and silicic magmas, conduit enlargement and deep-
ening accompany many hours of high-intensity sustained explosive discharges. Lithic fragments
in tephra fall deposits show that wall rocks are eroded and collapse by a variety of mechanisms
during such eruptions. A good example of a common sequence is the 1980 eruption of Mount
St. Helens where several weeks of small-scale phreatic activity were followed by several hours
of high-intensity discharge on May 18, 1980, during the Plinian stage of the eruption (Carey
& Sigurdsson 1985). At this stage, deep volcanic conduits are formed. Much of the kimberlite
literature draws on a comparison with the maar-diatreme literature as an analogy for explaining
kimberlite pipes; indeed, kimberlite pipes are widely regarded as examples of this type of volcano.
Although this explanation is reasonable from a descriptive and volcano morphology perspective, it
is less reasonable to assume, as a consequence, that an exclusively phreatomagmatic explanation is
implied.
←−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−−
Figure 8
Four-stage evolution of the K2 kimberlite pipe (after Brown et al. 2008c). The diagram displays key features of the evolution of
kimberlite eruptions proposed by Sparks et al. (2006). (a) Opening eruptive stage with near-surface large overpressures. Phreatic,
phreatomagmatic, and magmatic explosive activity creates an embryonic crater that deepens and widens and is accompanied by tensile
failure. (b) At some point, the pipe becomes wide and deep enough to have a 1-atm exit pressure. Subsequently, the flows no longer are
able to entrain all the fragmental material, and the pipe begins to fill. If flows with the infill become explosive, then further pipe
enlargement and interaction can occur. (c) Late-stage explosive activity develops a fluidized central region with remnants of layered
infill sequences at the margins (see model by Gernon et al. 2008a). (d ) Final geology comprising two geological units.
Post-emplacement hydrothermal circulation pervasively alters and lithifies the volcaniclastic deposits. Abbreviations: cKBr, cohesive
kimberlite breccia; mKBr, massive kimberlite breccia; MVK, massive volcaniclastic kimberlite; VK, volcaniclastic kimberlite.

~0 m
Tensile
ie
crater
reg
region
egion
o
Slope
failure ~ 300 m
Tensile
Tensile shallow-pipe
shallow
ow-p
p
pipe
p
pipe Subsidence region

go
failure
~ 1,000 m
VENT
Intermediate-stress
ntermediate
termediate
termediate-stre
d st
stress
Stress pipe
pe region
re
Block scaling
caving
Explosions
Rock ~ 2,500 m
bursting High-stress
pipe
pe region
Figure 9
Generalized kimberlite pipe excavation processes (after Barnett 2008) with indicative depths where different
mechanisms dominate.
Many processes of erosion and the formation of deep conduits in volcanic eruptions are due to
conduit and crater-wall instabilities that do not require any role for external water (summarized in
Barnett & Lorig 2007, Barnett 2008). The mechanisms causing pipe-wall failure are dependent on
both the rock mechanics (Figure 9) and pressure distributions in the explosive volcanic flows and
within the groundwater found in saturated host rock. Overpressure and underpressure are defined
as the difference in pressure between erupting magma in the conduit interior and the lithostatic
pressure in the wall rock. Of further relevance is the pressure difference between the erupting
magma pressure and hydrostatic pressure in groundwater systems. Large overpressures can develop
in the early stages of explosive eruptions and in the transitional region between magma transport in
512 Sparks
dikes and in cylindrical conduits, whereas large underpressures can develop in dikes and when the
fragmentation zone between coherent magma and fragmented mixtures is at a large depth (Sparks
et al. 2006, Costa et al. 2009). Theoretical models of explosive flows indicate overpressures, and
underpressures can readily exceed the strengths of wall rock, thus leading to failure conditions.
Instability depends on wall rock stresses in relation to these pressures, on the orientation of
fractures in the host rock, and, if groundwater is present in the host rock, on hydrostatic pressures
that may increase in response to heating (Barnett 2008). Failure mechanisms in the tensile shallow
environment are dominated by gravity. Such mechanisms include slope failure of the crater margins
as well as block faulting of country rock along concentric fracture systems by or along favorably
oriented fractures or bedding (Figure 9). At depths of approximately 1 km or more, stress systems
in conduit wall rocks are expected to become compressive, leading to stress spalling or rock
bursts due to high internally stored stresses or high fluid pressures that enlarge an underpressured
conduit. Large overpressures in groundwater associated with heating by magma are commonly
invoked to explain kimberlite pipe formation in the explosive phreatomagmatic model.

Root zones, sometimes with supposed blind intrusions, are observed in many kimberlites. In the
classic kimberlite pipe model, the pipe is divided into three regions: a crater, a downward-tapering
pipe, and a deep root zone, which can have a larger and rather irregular cross section in comparison
with the overlying tapering pipe. The root zone can be explained by wall rock fragmentation and
bursting in the deep parts of the pipes caused by either phreatomagmatic explosions or severe
underpressures in explosive flows. Barnett et al. (2011) described in detail the KO8 kimberlite,
which exemplifies the partial formation of a blind intrusion connected to a major pipe (see their
figure 13). Weak regions blow out into the pipe, and rock fragments are entrained into explosive
flows that remove the fragments and thereby form cavities into which later kimberlite is emplaced.
This mechanism requires that blind intrusions be connected to the main conduit.
Sparks et al. (2006) proposed an early waxing stage in kimberlite eruptions (Figure 8) in
which the erupting magma is initially overpressured at Earth’s surface and results in explosive
cratering. As the pipe widens and deepens, the supply rate of explosively erupting magma remains
high enough that any rock fragments that are transported into the pipe by wall rock failure are
transported out of the pipe by the high-speed flows. Thus, the pipe space is largely created before
it is infilled, an interpretation supported by field evidence. There are several examples of pipes
containing volcaniclastic kimberlitic infills, which either lack or have low abundances of lithic
clasts derived from the pipe wall (Walters et al. 2006; Brown et al. 2008c, 2009; Buse et al.
2011b; Porritt & Cas 2011). Nevertheless, pipe enlargement may continue contemporaneously
with infilling during eruptive activity, as indicated by evidence that is further considered below.
3.2. Pipe-Filling Processes

Inferences regarding kimberlite volcanism are derived largely from interpretations of the geology
of the rocks that infill pipes. Most of these rocks are volcaniclastic. Within the past decade, major
advances in kimberlite research have been the recognition of the diversity and complexity of the
lithofacies that infill kimberlite pipes and the demonstration that most kimberlite eruptions were
multistage events rather than single catastrophic explosions. Most kimberlitic volcaniclastic rocks
can be related to reasonably well understood processes that occur in modern active volcanoes
involving other kinds of magmas. Notions that kimberlite volcanism is somehow unique are be-
coming less plausible. However, kimberlites are different in some respects and of considerable
interest to the volcanological community because they represent volcanic products formed inside
and preserved within conduits and craters. Some of the associated processes may be unique to
this highly confined depositional environment. Kimberlites are very good places to study conduit

processes because of the detailed geology, geophysics, and structure that have been documented
in mines and during diamond exploration.
Most kimberlitic rocks can be classified according to well-established terminologies in the
volcanological literature (Cas et al. 2008). However, a legacy of terminology remains unique to
kimberlites, and some ontological arguments remain. As such, there is some reluctance to abandon
traditional and widely used kimberlite terms that are, nonetheless, ambiguous, and some confusion
also remains when genetic terms are used descriptively. Some of the ongoing controversies likely
reflect semantic rather than real issues, whereas others reflect genuine differences of opinion about
interpretation. Cas et al. (2008) provided a helpful summary and discussion of this terminology.
A typical kimberlite pipe comprises several different geological units as well as lithofacies.
Here, a lithofacies is defined as a collection of distinctive geological, structural, and textural
features, including, but not limited to, bedding, grain size, clast lithology, clast shape, and
grading. The contacts between geological units are commonly arranged concentrically in relation
to the pipe wall, and where there are sharp contacts, these contacts can be very steeply inclined
to vertical. The K2 kimberlite pipe at Venetia, South Africa, (Brown et al. 2009) is an example
of typical geology (Figure 7), and others can be found in Hetman et al. (2004), Stiefenhofer
& Farrow (2004), Webb et al. (2004), Sparks et al. (2006), Brown et al. (2008a), Gernon et al.
(2009b), Porritt & Cas (2009, 2011), Porritt et al. (2011), and Buse et al. (2011b). Geological
units may be made of more than one lithofacies, and distinctive combinations of lithofacies are
one way of recognizing a mappable geological unit. There can also be vertically arrangements of
different geological units and lithofacies with subhorizontal contacts between a sequence of units
filling the pipe, for example, at kimberlites at Ekati Mine (Crawford et al. 2009, Porritt & Cas
2011). A first-order division can be made between massive and layered volcaniclastic kimberlite
(MVK and LVK, respectively). Additionally, kimberlite pipes commonly contain a wide variety of
breccias.
3.2.1. Massive volcaniclastic kimberlite. MVK is a common and commonly dominant lithofa-
cies. Typically, it is a homogeneous, structureless volcaniclastic rock containing mixtures of crystals
(mostly serpentinized olivine), juvenile kimberlite pyroclasts, and lithic clasts. Local structures and
heterogeneities include distorted intraclasts of layered rock and fluidization pipes (Gernon et al.
2008b, 2009b). Clastic components are mostly lapilli and coarse ash; blocks (greater than 64 mm)
are either sparse or absent, although gradations into breccias with kimberlite matrix are found.
The almost ubiquitous intense alteration can obscure primary textures and structures, making
interpretation difficult. In particular, the matrix of MVK has been interpreted as fine ash, which
is commonly partly or completely replaced by alteration minerals (Hayman et al. 2008, 2009;
Porritt & Russell 2011; Porritt et al. 2012b), and as secondary minerals infilling original pore
space (Sparks et al. 2006, Stripp et al. 2006, Porritt et al. 2012b). MVK typically forms steep-sided
bodies of rock, which commonly cut earlier LVK (Figure 7). MVK units have a tendency to be lo-
cated toward the center of pipes, although they also can completely fill some pipes. K2 at Venetia,
South Africa, (Brown et al. 2009) provides an excellent example (Figure 7) and includes a younger
MVK unit cutting across an earlier LVK. Although the term TKB (tuffisitic kimberlite breccia)
has been widely used in the kimberlite literature, it has received criticism (Sparks et al. 2006, Cas
et al. 2008) citing its definition as quite complex, inaccurate (the rocks are usually not breccias),
and inappropriate in that “tuffisitic” is usually used to imply an intrusive origin. Although TKB
was originally thought to be an intrusive rock (Clement & Skinner 1985), current consensus is
that it is a volcaniclastic pipe-filling deposit. Different interpretations have emerged to explain
MVK as, namely, interactions between explosive erupting mixtures and gases with debris-filled
pipes and column collapse to form pyroclastic flow deposits.
514 Sparks
Fine-particle ejection
Deposition
Particulate Static
fluidized unfluidized
region region
Bubbling
Erosion fluidized
region
Compressed air
Figure 10
Schematic model of fluidization of a tapered volcanic conduit pyroclastic infill (after Gernon et al. 2009a).
Note the presence of a central bubbling fluidized region with central upflow, downward return flows, and
marginal regions of static unfluidized and layered material. Slip along the conduit sidewalls leads to the
formation of layered material at or near the surface that can be transported into the deep interior of the pipe.
In the fluidization model (Figure 10) (Sparks et al. 2006, Walters et al. 2006, Gernon et al.
2009b), MVK is the consequence of mixing of pyroclastic materials infilling the pipe as a result of
explosive flows of volcanic gas and new fragmented magma into the base of the pipe and through the
debris. A circulation system develops in which an upward flow of gas as large, conduit-scale bubbles
causes intense mixing in a central zone while a downward return flow at the margins in which
layered deposits formed at or near the surface can be transported deep into the pipe (Figure 10).
Sparks et al. (2006) developed a three-stage model of the evolution of kimberlite pipes and related
this to the velocity of the gas released by explosive activity and the magma supply rate (Figure 11).
Early in the eruption when the pipe has a small cross section at its exit, the velocities of explosive
flows are high and the erupting mixture is overpressured at the vent exit. All fragments up to at
least 1 m in size, including juvenile pyroclasts and lithic clasts transported into the pipe interior
by wall rock failure, are then ejected (Figure 11a). As either the pipe widens and deepens or the
magma supply rate declines (or both), a critical condition point is reached when the exit pressure is
1 atm. Further enlargement of the conduit or a decline in the magma supply rate leads to a marked
decrease in gas velocities inside the conduit (Figure 11a). Under these conditions, the flows can no
longer eject all the pyroclasts and lithic clasts, and conditions enabling formation of a fluidized bed

200
a
100
Gas exit velocity (m s –1)

30,000
50
10,000
20
3,000
10 1,000
300
5
10 0
b
Maximum clast diameter (m)
10 –1 30,000
10,000
10 –2
3,000
1,000
10 –3 300
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400

Radius (m)
Figure 11
Regimes of explosive flows in volcanic conduits (after Sparks et al. 2006). (a) Variations of mean vertical
velocity as a function of pipe radius (r > rc ) and magma supply rate in the pressure-adjusted regime; rc is the
critical vent radius at which the exit pressure is 1 atm. (b) Variations of the particle sizes (diameter) that can
be ejected from the vent per the criterion that the exit velocity of the gas equal the terminal velocity of the
particle.
result (Figures 10 and 11b). This concept is supported by analogue experiments and theoretical
models (Walters et al. 2006; Gernon et al. 2008a; Ross et al. 2008a,b; Gernon et al. 2009b).
A somewhat similar dynamic model has been proposed for the formation of MVK deposits in
debris-filled volcanic vents in phreatomagmatic explosive eruptions (Kokelaar 1983, Ross et al.
2008a, White & Ross 2011). Here, explosive flows are generated by phreatomagmatic explosions
that interact dynamically with the conduit fill. There is intense mixing, and circulation is similar
in character to that noted in the fluidization model. However, in phreatomagmatic systems,
debris fill may be wet and cohesive, so the system is not necessarily fluidized but is dynamically
stirred (Ross et al. 2008b).
Fluidization and dynamic stirring of nonfluidized systems explain many of the otherwise enig-
matic features of MVK: their well-mixed and structureless character; the absence of large lithic
516 Sparks
clasts; a tendency to occupy the centers of pipes and cut across earlier LVK; and, for those cases
in which alteration has not obscured textures, the common lack of fine ash and presence of high
porosity now filled by alteration minerals. Steep inward dips of LVK above depositional angles
of repose can be explained (Figure 10). Geochemical features (Nowicki et al. 2008), such as a
concentration of Ni that is thought to reflect a concentration of olivine crystals and removal of
fine ash, are also consistent with fluidization. An enigmatic feature of kimberlites is the occurrence
of pelletal lapilli, which are crystal or lithic clasts coated in a layer of kimberlite groundmass, re-
senting original melt. Gernon et al. (2012b) proposed that pelletal lapilli are formed dynamically
when a jet of gas and kimberlite melt is driven into a fluidized bed of pyroclasts toward the base
of the pipe. Coated sweets are industrially generated in the same way, and Gernon et al. (2012b)
showed that the core diameter ratios of kimberlite melt rims have a thickness similar to those of
the industrial products.
Porritt et al. (2008a) have proposed an alternative to the fluidization model for MVK: In
their model, pyroclastic flow deposits within the pipe formed by extravent column collapse. They
draw attention to the similarity of MVK to typical ignimbrites with poor sorting and structureless
character. This concept has been critiqued by Brown et al. (2008b), who questioned whether there
is enough material in a collapsing eruption column to generate the observed deposit volumes.
Porritt et al. (2008b) responded by presenting some calculations (see their figure 1) to argue
that column collapse could plausibly deposit a mass comparable to that observed in the Fox
kimberlite. Unfortunately, the high values of column density they assigned at levels different
from the fragmentation level to the umbrella region are implausible and inconsistent with known
dynamics of conduit flows and eruption columns. Their chosen densities in the conduit flow zone
and gas thrust region are 400 to 600 kg m−3 , values only a factor of approximately two below
the density estimated at fragmentation. However, high-speed explosive flows occur only because
of the dramatic expansion of decompressing gases such that densities are typically two orders of
magnitude below the density at fragmentation (Wilson et al. 1980, Sparks et al. 1997). For magmas
with a few percent gas (either CO2 or H2 O), the densities typically reduce to a few kilograms per
cubic meter at the vent. Noting that, by definition, the convective part of a column must be less
dense than the atmosphere, the authors also assumed a density of 20 kg m−3 in the buoyant part
of the plume, an impossible value because the atmosphere has a density of ∼1 kg m−3 . Their
calculations overestimate the mass in a collapsing column by a factor of order 100.
There is no objection here to the concept that column collapse from transient explosive activity
can back-fill a conduit with pyroclastic flow deposits. However, the volumes must be small from
individual collapse events, so layering would be expected. Each successive explosion would have
to pass through and disrupt the deposits formed from a previous explosion. Porritt et al. (2008b)
considered the fluidization model speculative, but if the conduit-filling stage of kimberlite erup-
tions is long-lived and multistage, as suggested by different cross-cutting units, then interaction
between later erupting magma and earlier pipe-filling deposits is inevitable. Such interactions
are also explicit in ideas about interactions in other maar-diatreme volcanoes and Surtseyan-style
eruptions where explosive eruptions take place through conduit fills and generate deposits similar
to those of MVK (e.g., Kokelaar 1983, Ross et al. 2008a, White & Ross 2011).
3.2.2. Layered volcaniclastic kimberlites. LVKs within kimberlite pipes are diverse and likely
represent a variety of processes, eruptive styles, and depositional environments. They include fine
to medium bedded tuffs, lapilli tuffs, lapillistones, and breccias. In most cases, LVK dips into the
pipe interior, sometimes at angles well above the angle of repose of unconsolidated pyroclastic
particles. However, whether LVK is formed in situ or is transported down the pipe from higher
levels is not always clear (see Figure 10). Some of the deposits likely represent primary ash and

lapilli fall deposits. Others may represent column collapse processes (i.e., pyroclastic flow and surge
deposits) and mass flows related to slumping of pyroclastic deposits from the crater or crater rim
into the pipes. There are also examples of deposits that can be attributed to secondary processes,
including infilling of an empty pipe after eruption (e.g., Moss et al. 2008). Coarse breccia layers
are widely interpreted as debris flows and debris avalanches formed by crater- or pipe-wall failure.
The K2 kimberlite (Figure 7) provides an example of LVK lithofacies; detailed descriptions and
interpretations of LVK lithofacies may be found in Brown et al. (2008a, 2009), Porritt & Cas
(2009, 2011), Gernon et al. (2009b), and Buse et al. (2011b).
Soft sediment structures, inclusion of deformed mud clasts, cross-bedding attributed to base
surges, and abundant accretionary lapilli are found in some LVKs and can be explained by
phreatomagmatic volcanism (e.g., Brown et al. 2008c; Porritt et al. 2012). Other deposits were
emplaced at high temperature from thermal remanent magnetism studies (Fontana et al. 2011),
from diagnostic welding textures and structures (Brown et al. 2008a), and from evidence of pel-
letal lapilli (Gernon et al. 2012a), thus indicating magmatic eruptions. Past contentious debates
on whether kimberlites are formed from phreatomagmatic or magmatic eruptions (Lorenz et al.
1998, Lorenz & Kurszlaukis 2007, Sparks et al. 2006, Kurszlaukis & Lorenz 2008) look increas-
ingly anachronistic as evidence for both styles emerges.
A diversity of environments for kimberlite volcanism have been recognized. The Fort à la Corne
kimberlite pipes in Saskatchewan, Canada, erupted in shallow Cretaceous seas. These kimberlites
are dominated by shallow bowl-shaped craters rather than deep pipes (Field & Scott Smith 1999,
Scott Smith 2008). Researchers have also begun to recognize marine volcanogenic sediments and
pyroclastic units, including subaqueous debris flow deposits and turbidites (Pittari et al. 2008,
Lefebvre & Kurszlaukis 2008). Some of these units are products of younger eruptions that infill
earlier craters.
3.2.3. Coherent rocks, welding, and emplacement temperatures. A controversial issue in

kimberlite geology is the origin of dense coherent kimberlitic rocks. These rocks can occur at
all levels in a pipe. Although particularly common in root zones (Hetman et al. 2004, Skinner &
Marsh 2004), they are also observed at high levels (e.g., van Straaten et al. 2011). Many have also
been classified as hypabyssal, but compelling evidence indicates many examples are pyroclastic
in origin and may have formed via welding processes (Brown et al. 2008a, 2009; Crawford et al.
2009; Buse et al. 2011b; Hayman & Cas 2011; van Straaten et al. 2011). Evidence for a welded
clastogenic origin includes: gradational contacts with unequivocal pyroclastic rocks rather than
abrupt chilled margins; infilling geometries, which are part of the complex layered sequences
in LVK; remnant pyroclastic textures, structures, and beds particularly in transitional rocks (for
examples, see Hetman et al. 2004, Skinner & Marsh 2004, Hayman & Cas 2011, van Straaten
et al. 2011); welded plastic deformation in pyroclasts within transitional rocks; well-dispersed lithic
clasts; broken crystals (Buse et al. 2011b, van Straaten et al. 2011); and space-filling geometries
rather than discordant intrusive relationships. Crystalline groundmass textures are advanced as
hypabyssal in origin (Hetman et al. 2004), but they are also characteristic of strongly welded rocks
(Brown et al. 2008a, Hayman & Cas 2011, van Straaten et al. 2011).
Much has been made of globular segregationary textures that can occur in the transition zones
between unequivocal volcaniclastic and coherent rock types. Interpretations that they represent
frozen fragmentation or degassing fronts (Hetman et al. 2004, Skinner & Marsh 2004, Mitchell
et al. 2009) lack credibility by invoking ultrafast but unexplained mechanisms to freeze in very
dynamic eruptive processes. Textures and geological relationships in transitional rocks are much
better explained by progressive coalescence and amalgamation of magmaclasts and melt rims
on kimberlite pyroclasts during welding and infilling of residual pore spaces with geometries
518 Sparks
controlled by surface tension effects (Brown et al. 2008a, Hayman & Cas 2011). The fluidal low-
viscosity character of kimberlite pyroclasts (Moss & Russell 2011, Gernon et al. 2012a) indicates
ductile fragmentation of low-viscosity melts in explosive eruption. Rapid welding processes of
sintering, coalescence, and hot pressing can easily reconstitute such pyroclasts into transitional
and dense coherent rocks (Brown et al. 2008a, van Straaten et al. 2011). By contrast, kimberlite
dikes and sills of undisputed intrusive origin are widespread (Mitchell 2008) and are not a matter
of dispute. They are typified by sharp contacts and a lack of xenoliths except very locally.
3.3. Crater and Surface Volcanic Deposits

Evidence on the characteristics of kimberlite volcanism is emerging from studies of crater deposits
and the Igwisi Hills volcano, which preserves tephra cones and lavas. These studies confirm the
diversity of eruption environments and styles, providing conclusive evidence for both phreatomag-
matic and magmatic styles of explosive activity, the existence of kimberlite lavas and clastogenic
welded rocks, the formation of pyroclastic flows that can infill neighboring older kimberlite pipes
and craters, and the occurrence of kimberlite eruptions in shallow marine environments.
Generalized sections through kimberlite pipes (Figure 8) commonly invoke two regions of
a deep, steep, downward-tapering pipe and a shallower, bowl-shaped crater. Scott Smith (2008)
and Field & Scott Smith (1999) proposed that some pipes are dominated by bowl-shaped craters,
whereas others are predominantly deep narrow pipes. The Orapa South kimberlite exemplifies
crater-fill geology (Field et al. 1997, Gernon et al. 2009a). Lithofacies include bedded tephra
fall deposits, well-sorted talus avalanche deposits at the angle of repose, debris flows related
to crater-wall failures, pyroclastic flow deposits, and volcanogenic sedimentary rocks related to
reworking and lacustrine sediments. In the case of the pyroclastic flow deposit at Orapa south,
TRM data showed that the deposit was hot (Fontana et al. 2011); gas fluidization pipes were also
found (Gernon et al. 2009b). This same deposit covers the entire crater floor continuously and
is unbroken by subsequent events, leading to the conclusion that it was related to an eruption
of a neighboring kimberlite volcano. Similar conclusions that kimberlite units can infill earlier
craters have been reached in other studies (Lefebvre & Kurszlaukis 2008, Moss et al. 2008). Van
Straaten et al. (2011) documented a crater-filling coherent kimberlite and demonstrated its origin
as an extrusive clastogenic pyroclastic deposit, comparable to many agglutinated rocks in basaltic
volcanoes.
At approximately 10,000 years in age, the Igwisi Hills volcano in Tanzania is the youngest
known kimberlite (Brown et al. 2012) and consists of three vents with eroded pyroclastic cones,
craters, and lava flows. The cones stand <40 m above the surrounding ground and are comparable
in size to small monogenetic basaltic volcanoes. Each volcano shows a similar evolutionary pattern
characterized by three phases: Phase 1 involved explosive excavation of craters and fallout of lithic
clast-bearing tuffs, Phase 2 was characterized by fallout of juvenile lapilli from unsteady eruption
columns and the construction of a pyroclastic cone, and lavas extruded in Phase 3. Characteristics
of the pyroclastic cone deposits, including an absence of ballistic clasts with dominantly scoriaceous
lapilli stones and lapilli tuffs, indicate weak Strombolian explosive activity. Lava flows featured at
Igwisi Hills indicate unexpectedly high viscosity (estimated at 102 to 103 Pa s) for kimberlite,
likely a consequence of degassing and in-vent cooling. Extrusion temperatures are constrained to
be between 600◦ C and 850◦ C as a result of a consistent remanent magnetism and the presence of
fresh unreacted biotite in granite basement xenoliths in the lavas. Early products are consistent with
phreatomagmatic explosions with crater formation, whereas the lava scoria cones are consistent
with magmatic explosive activity; this is a very common sequence in many monogenetic basaltic
volcanoes.

4. ALTERATION
Strong and pervasive alteration is a characteristic of most kimberlites. Serpentine is a major phase in
almost all kimberlites. It replaces olivine and other primary igneous minerals, such as monticellite
and calcite. It also occurs as a matrix mineral in volcaniclastic rocks and a groundmass mineral in
hypabyssal rocks (Mitchell 2008). Other important alteration minerals include diopside, calcite,
chlorite, talc, and various clay minerals. Diopside is a common matrix component of MVK and
has been regarded as a defining feature of tuffisitic kimberlite (Hetman 2008, Mitchell et al. 2009).
These minerals partially replace the groundmass of juvenile pyroclasts, replace lithic clasts and
primary igneous crystals, and infill primary and secondary pore spaces (Morkel et al. 2006, Stripp
et al. 2006, Mitchell 2008, Mitchell et al. 2009, Hayman et al. 2009, Buse et al. 2011a, Porritt et al.
2012). The paragenesis of these assemblages can be quite complex with multiple generations of
serpentine, some of which replace early formed serpentine or infill late-stage veins (Mitchell et al.
2009, Porritt et al. 2012). Some minerals, notably calcite and phlogopite, can have both primary
igneous origin and secondary origin.
The origin of alteration minerals, particularly serpentine, in kimberlites remains controversial.
Mitchell (2008), Mitchell et al. (2009), and Mitchell (2013) proposed that many of the minerals,
such as diopside, chlorite, and serpentine, are formed from deuteric magmatic fluids. They regard
the minerals as primary. In this case, the large water masses required to form serpentine have
implications for the volatile inventory of kimberlite magmas and, if the alteration occurs in a
closed system, for the compositions of erupting kimberlite melts.
Alternatively, alteration has also been attributed to circulation of external fluids through a highly
reactive kimberlite matrix (Sheppard & Dawson 1975, Ukhanov & Devirts 1983, Stripp et al. 2006,
Hayman et al. 2009, Sparks et al. 2009, Buse et al. 2011a, Porritt et al. 2012). The argument for this
interpretation is strong. The mineral assemblages are typical of green schist facies and comparable
to the pervasive alteration observed in the ocean crust. Alteration temperatures are estimated in the
range of 300 to 400◦ C (Stripp et al. 2006, Buse et al. 2011a) as in ocean floor hydrothermal systems.
This temperature range likely reflects the optimization of fluid flow through hot permeable rocks
due to a minimum in fluid viscosity, large enthalpy, and fluid density changes in supercritical fluids
over a narrow temperature range; these effects combine to maximize mass fluxes in permeable flow.
Bulk rock composition also plays a role. For example, Porritt et al. (2012) documented how the
presence of silicic basement lithics can provide chemical components to promote formation of
diopside. Calculations based on the observed mineral assemblages, such as serpentine-diopside-
chlorite, constrain the fluid composition to pure water with negligible CO2 (Stripp et al. 2006,
Porritt et al. 2012). If the alteration were predominantly related to magmatic water, then the
magmas would be CO2 poor, which is inconsistent with many lines of evidence discussed in
Section 2 (see above). Per the deuteric hypothesis, kimberlite magmas must transport very high
concentrations (several percent or more) of water in the melt to very low pressures to be released
more or less in situ to form the serpentine. Experimental support for kimberlites having unusually
high water solubility is ambiguous. Some experiments on possible kimberlite compositions suggest
low water solubility in silica-deficient melts (Brooker et al. 2011), whereas experiments by Keppler
(2003) on carbonate melts suggest very high water solubilities with up to 10 wt% water dissolved
at only 100 MPa. The latter study suggests a great deal of water could be transported in solution,
provided the kimberlite melt phase is rich in carbonate. Transport and retention of magmatic
water as an exsolved phase is implausible because very high overpressures (tens to hundreds of
megapascals) would be required to provide enough water to form the hydrous alteration minerals.
Primary porosities and permeabilities in kimberlite pyroclastic deposits are expected to be large,
and the reactivity of the major mineral constituents is high. A vertical pipe filled with mostly hot
520 Sparks
olivine and other reactive constituents adjacent to groundwater is a circumstance highly conducive
to the development of a hydrothermal system, which is primed to respond at the temperatures at
which the main green schist facies mineral reactions take place and mass transfer is most efficient.
The reactions in question involve major increases in volume between reactants and products.
Minerals like olivine and groundmass ash components are replaced (Hayman et al. 2009, Porritt
& Russell 2011, Porritt et al. 2012). Pore space is infilled (Stripp et al. 2006), leading to a major
decrease in permeability and self-sealing of the system, although Porritt et al. (2012) provide
evidence for the development of secondary porosity due to dissolution. Alteration in kimberlites
likely occurs continuously from hydrothermal temperatures to near-surface low temperatures, and
there is a continuum of alteration from hydrothermal to diagenetic to surface weathering. New
observations of serpentine in the groundmass of the Igwisi Hills kimberlite indicate alteration from
external fluids in an open system (Willcox et al. 2012). Both lavas and pyroclastic rocks from the
Igwisi pyroclastic cones demonstrate formation of groundmass and matrix serpentine from low-
temperature alteration of olivine and spinel in environments that make involvement of internally
generated hydrous fluids implausible. Finally, because hydrothermal and deuteric alterations are
not mutually exclusive hypotheses, a role for magmatic gases in alteration seems very plausible.
Thus, new questions arise. What dominates most of the alteration? Can any convincing evidence
for deuteric alteration be found?
The views of Mitchell (2008), Mitchell et al. (2009), and Mitchell (2013) indicating that deuteric
alteration dominates are briefly addressed. These authors view serpentine as a primary mineral
formed from magma-related fluids. They suggest that polygonal serpentine forms from gels that
are generated from late-stage residua. However, this assertion is not supported by evidence. Gels
are not known naturally, and where they have been invoked, they are understood to be related
to a gel phase formed from hydrothermal fluids (Andreani et al. 2008). Of particular note are
the similarities between the sequence of serpentine formation in oceanic peridotite and kimber-
lites (Andreani et al. 2008). In the case of oceanic peridotites, the serpentines are formed from
external seawater; the possibility that the water-poor ocean basalts could supply deuteric fluids
is most unlikely. The main objection to the deuteric alteration model remains the great diffi-
culty in transporting sufficient amounts of indigenous magmatic water to form serpentine into
low-pressure environments. Despite the contention by Mitchell et al. (2009) that there are no
known counterparts of “tuffisitic kimberlite,” there are abundant volcaniclastic rocks, which have
interacted with hydrous fluids at elevated hydrothermal temperatures, including many ignimbrites
(e.g., Smith 1960), as well as volcaniclastic rocks in hydrothermal ore deposits (e.g., Paterson &
Cloos 2005). The mineral assemblages are different, but the processes are the same. Mitchell et al.
(2009) also asserted that hydrothermal systems are not known in cold cratonic environments where
kimberlite pipes are emplaced. However, this is circular reasoning and ignores the observation
that hydrothermal systems inevitably develop where hot volcaniclastic deposits and hypabyssal
intrusions juxtapose supplies of cold water.
Stable isotopes can help identify fluid sources, but they can also be ambiguous. On the basis of
stable isotope data, Sheppard & Dawson (1975) and Ukhanov & Devirts (1983) inferred alteration
was caused by external fluids. Mitchell (2013) provided a major advance via an analysis using the ion
probe to examine oxygen isotopes of serpentines in several kimberlites. The δO18 values obtained
range from close to mantle values of approximately +6 to lighter values, but the shifts are typically
quite modest with most data in the +3 to +6 range. Mitchell (2013) used these results to infer that
the involvement of external water with light values is limited and, therefore, to support the deuteric
alteration model. However, shifts from mantle values due to alteration by external water strongly
depend on the water to rock ratio. If only the external water needed to form the serpentine were

involved, then the change in oxygen isotopes would be small. In typical serpentinization reactions,
the ratio of oxygen from the olivine to oxygen from the water is between 6 and 7. If the olivine
has a mantle value of +6, then, with everything being external, the altered serpentine will be
approximately +3 to +5 for typical groundwater isotope values (say, δO18 = −10). Furthermore,
an initially light fluid will exchange with the kimberlite matrix and move toward the oxygen isotope
composition of the matrix that dominates the mass of the system as it circulates. Accordingly, the
shift can be smaller or even negligible. Thus, the results are also consistent with most of the water
being of external origin.
5. FINAL REMARKS
Kimberlites are intriguing and challenging rocks to understand. Various factors contribute to this
challenge: the lack of direct observations of kimberlite eruptions; the scarcity of preserved extru-
sive kimberlites; the unique environment of emplacement within deep volcanic conduits; and the
extensive alteration and widespread involvement of xenoliths. Likewise, their deep origin gives
rise to difficulties in unraveling the processes that form kimberlite melts and enable them to be
transported to Earth’s surface. Nonetheless, their mysteries are being systematically revealed, and
ideas regarding kimberlites are beginning to change significantly. For example, ideas concerning
single catastrophic eruptions and igneous processes that are unique to kimberlite volcanism are
looking much less credible. Some of their volcanic geology and petrology can be explained by
processes that happen in many other magma systems and volcanoes. The geological lithofacies
of kimberlites record a wide diversity of eruptive styles and environments, many of which can
be matched with other well-understood volcanic systems and processes. Yet, many enigmas and
controversies remain. There seems to be a strong link between the size of kimberlite pipes and
the presence of diamonds (Gurney 1989), suggesting an as-yet-unexplained volcanic process con-
trol. Their great depth of origin, likely very high volatile contents, and very low viscosity make
kimberlites an igneous outlier. The completeness of the geological documentation that has re-
sulted from their mining makes kimberlites wonderful rocks with which to explore processes in
volcanic vents. New processes, such as in-vent fluidization and debris mixing by explosive flows,
have been recognized through the study of kimberlite geology and may help explain other volcanic
systems. The nature of the melts in kimberlite magma and the volatile inventories are not well
constrained. The alteration processes are contentious, although this review takes the firm position
that most of the alteration is essentially similar to that found in other igneous systems, including
hydrothermal metamorphism, diagenesis, and weathering.
DISCLOSURE STATEMENT
The author is not aware of any affiliations, memberships, funding, or financial holdings that might
be perceived as affecting the objectivity of this review.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This review is a based on the work of a large number of researchers. I particularly acknowl-
edge the contributions of colleagues and research students at Bristol supported generously by
de Beers. This research group would not have existed without the support, enthusiasm, exper-
tise, and contributions of Matthew Field. I acknowledge major contributions by Richy Brown,
Ben Buse, Iris Buisman, Giovanni Fontana, Tom Gernon, Mark Gilbertson, Janine Kavanagh,
Rachael Ogilvie-Harris, John Schumacher, Gemma Stripp, Mike Walter, and Anna Walters to
522 Sparks
the research efforts at Bristol. Over the research period, discussions with Wayne Barnett, Ray
Cas, Roger Mitchell, Lucy Porritt, Kelly Russell, Johan Stiefenhofer, and Mark Tait have been
stimulating, sometimes challenging, and helpful. Comments on an earlier version of this paper by
Matthew Field, Lucy Porritt, and Kelly Russell are much appreciated. The paper is dedicated to
the memory of two great British igneous petrologists who made huge contributions to kimberlite
and mantle studies, namely Ken Bailey and Barry Dawson. The author was supported by the
European Research Council during the preparation of this manuscript.
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Annu. Rev. Earth Planet. Sci. 2013. 41:497–528 Keywords

This article’s doi: Abstract

2. MAGMA GENERATION AND IGNEOUS PROCESSES

2.1. Generation in the Deep Mantle

www.annualreviews.org • Kimberlite Volcanism 499

to be derived from disaggregation of depleted (harzburgite) mantle xenocrysts. Orthopyroxene

2.2. Magma Ascent

www.annualreviews.org • Kimberlite Volcanism 501

2.3. Magmatic Volatiles

2.4. Intrusion, Differentiation, Multiple Magma Pulses,

www.annualreviews.org • Kimberlite Volcanism 503

2.5. Near-Surface Kimberlite Magmas and Melts

Basement host rock

Area of olivine Lithic rafts

lithic rafts 17.5 Moderate vertical

Olivine sizes (mm)

www.annualreviews.org • Kimberlite Volcanism

Experiments with fluid at 100 MPa

LR Fosterite (or olivine)

Lime Periclase (or spinel)

www.annualreviews.org • Kimberlite Volcanism 507

Consequently, inferences about processes have sometimes proved to be ambiguous or contentious.

3.1. Pipe Formation

100 m 720 m 100 m

d Massive volcaniclastic kimberlite

? Country Kimberlite dike

West East 600 km

www.annualreviews.org • Kimberlite Volcanism 509

Explosive breakthrough of magma to surface Emplacement of K2 West

explosive widening Failure

Emplacement of K2 East Post eruption

www.annualreviews.org • Kimberlite Volcanism 511

pipe Subsidence region

invoked to explain kimberlite pipe formation in the explosive phreatomagmatic model.

3.2. Pipe-Filling Processes

www.annualreviews.org • Kimberlite Volcanism 513

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Gas exit velocity (m s –1)

0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 400

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3.2.3. Coherent rocks, welding, and emplacement temperatures. A controversial issue in

3.3. Crater and Surface Volcanic Deposits

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breccias by X-ray diffraction. J. S. Afr. Inst. Min. Metall. 106:397406

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The Meaning of Stromatolites

The Betic-Rif Arc and Its Orogenic Hinterland: A Review

The Behavior of the Lithosphere on Seismic to Geologic Timescales

The Formation and Dynamics of Super-Earth Planets

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