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Volcanological And Petrogenetic Characteristics Of Komatiites Of The 3.3 Ga Saw Mill Complex, Weltevreden Formation, Barberton Greenstone Belt, South Africa, Matthew Stephen Huber

LSU Master's Theses

The Saw Mill Complex (SMC) is a 1275 m thick layered komatiitic sequence in the 3.3 Ga Weltevreden Formation, uppermost stratigraphic unit of the Onverwacht Group in the northern part of the Barberton Greenstone Belt, South Africa. A series of ultramafic complexes in the Weltevreden Formation have been interpreted as layered ultramafic intrusions, consisting of thick, layered ultramafic units of peridotite, pyroxenite, dunite, and gabbro. However, recent work on the Pioneer complex of the Weltevreden Formation has demonstrated an extrusive origin of komatiites and tuffs. The Weltevreden Formation has been less studied than other Onverwacht Group units. It is likely …