Rate of growth of the preserved North American continental crust: Evidence from Hf and O isotopes in Mississippi detrital zircons

Detrital zircons from the Mississippi River have been analyzed for U-Th-Pb, Lu-Hf and O isotopes to constrain the rate of growth of the preserved North American continental crust. One hundred and forty two concordant zircon U/Pb dates on grains mounted in epoxy, obtained by Excimer laser ablation ICP-MS method, resolved six major periods of zircon crystallization: 0-0.25, 0.3-0.6, 0.95-1.25, 1.3-1.5, 1.65-1.95 and 2.5-3.0 Ga. These age ranges match the ages of the recognized lithotectonic units of the North American continent in the hinterland of the Mississippi River. Ninety-six zircons mounted on tape, which show no age zonation and were within 7.5% of concordance, were selected to represent the six U/Pb age time intervals and analyzed for Lu-Hf and O isotope by laser ablation MC-ICP-MS and SHRIMP II, respectively. The δ¹⁸O values of the zircons show a small step increase in the maximum δ¹⁸O values at the Archean-Proterozoic boundary from 7.5‰ in the Archean to 9.5‰, and rarely 13‰, in the Proterozoic and Phanerozoic. However, the average value of δ¹⁸O in zircons changes little with time, showing that the increase in the maximum δ¹⁸O values between 2.5 and 2.0 Ga, which can be attributed to an increase in the sediment content of the source regions of younger granitoids, is largely balanced by an increase in zircons with anomalously low δ¹⁸O, which can be attributed to hydrothermally altered crust in the granitoid source region.εHf_i values for the zircons range from 13.1 to −26.9. Zircons derived from juvenile crust, which we define as having mantle δ¹⁸O (4.5-6.5‰) and lying within error of the Hf depleted mantle growth curve, are rare or absent in the Mississippi basin. The overwhelming majority of zircons crystallized from melted pre-existing continental crust, or mantle-derived magmas that were contaminated by continental crust. The average time difference between primitive crust formation and remelting for each of the recognized lithotectonic time intervals, which is defined as crustal incubation time in this study, is 890 ± 460 Myr. There is also a suggestion that the crustal incubation time increases with decreasing age in the Mississippi basin, which is consistent with the declining role of radioactive heat production in the lower crust with time.The average Hf model age (1.94 Ga), weighted by fraction of zircons in the river load is in reasonable agreement with the Nd model age (1.7 Ga) for the Mississippi River. However, if the zircons are weighted by the area of North America covered by the six recognized periods of zircon crystallization the average model age is 2.35 Ga, which compares favorably with an area weighted Nd model age of 2.36 Ga. Our preferred approach is to use the measured O isotope values to constrain variations in the ¹⁷⁶Lu/¹⁷⁷Hf ratio of the granitic source region from which the zircons crystallized, making the assumption that zircons with mantle-like O isotopic ratios have higher ¹⁷⁶Lu/¹⁷⁷Hf than zircons with higher O isotope values. This method gives an average Hf model age of 2.53 Ga, which is 180 Myr older than the constant ¹⁷⁶Lu/¹⁷⁷Hf calculation.The area weighted zircon Hf model ages show two distinct periods of crust formation for the North American continent, 1.6-2.2 and 2.9-3.4 Ga. At least 50% of the preserved North American continental crust was extracted from the mantle by 2.9 Ga and 90% by 1.6 Ga. Two similar periods of crustal growth are also recognized in Gondwana (Hawkesworth C. J. and Kemp A. I. S. (2006) Using hafnium and oxygen isotopes in zircons to unravel the record of crustal evolution. Chem. Geol.226, 144-162.), suggesting that these may be periods of global continental crustal growth. However, we stress that more data from other continents are required before the hypothesis of episodic global continental growth can be accepted with confidence.     

胶北太古宙早期锆石U-Pb定年及Hf同位素研究：华北克拉通古老陆壳增生及再循环的证据

古老陆壳物质的发现与鉴别是探索地球早期陆壳形成与演化历史的重要内容之一,锆石U-Pb年龄结合Hf同位素研究是该研究的重要手段。本文通过对胶北地体内一个长英质副片麻岩中的锆石开展系统的原位U-Pb定年和微量、稀土元素分析,获得了多个太古宙早期的锆石。根据这些锆石的阴极发光图像、Th/U比值及稀土元素球粒陨石标准化配分模式,它们具有典型岩浆锆石的特征,其中2个分析点给出了3413Ma和3400Ma(~3.4Ga)的锆石U-Pb年龄,7个分析点给出3547±19Ma(MSWD=1.16)的锆石U-Pb年龄,指示太古宙早期的陆壳岩浆事件;结合华北克拉通其它地区的类似研究结果,暗示华北克拉通可能曾经存在比现今出露面积更大的太古宙早期的古老陆壳。这些古老锆石的Hf同位素分析显示,它们的εHf(t)值在-6.19~0.95之间,平均为-2.54,两阶段Hf模式年龄在3737~4353Ma之间,平均值为~4.1Ga,远大于锆石的U-Pb年龄,指示华北克拉通存在~4.1Ga的地壳增生作用及古老陆壳(3.55Ga)的再循环。     

Detrital zircon evidence for Hf isotopic evolution of granitoid crust and continental growth

We have determined U-Pb ages, trace element abundances and Hf isotopic compositions of approximately 1000 detrital zircon grains from the Mississippi, Congo, Yangtze and Amazon Rivers. The U-Pb isotopic data reveal the lack of >3.3 Ga zircons in the river sands, and distinct peaks at 2.7-2.5, 2.2-1.9, 1.7-1.6, 1.2-1.0, 0.9-0.4, and <0.3 Ga in the accumulated age distribution. These peaks correspond well with the timing of supercontinent assembly. The Hf isotopic data indicate that many zircons, even those having Archean U-Pb ages, crystallized from magmas involving an older crustal component, suggesting that granitoid magmatism has been the primary agent of differentiation of the continental crust since the Archean era. We calculated Hf isotopic model ages for the zircons to estimate the mean mantle-extraction ages of their source materials. The oldest zircon Hf model ages of about 3.7 Ga for the river sands suggest that some crust generation had taken place by 3.7 Ga, and that it was subsequently reworked into <3.3 Ga granitoid continental crust. The accumulated model age distribution shows peaks at 3.3-3.0, 2.9-2.4, and 2.0-0.9 Ga.The striking attribute of our new data set is the non-uniformitarian secular change in Hf isotopes of granitoid crusts; Hf isotopic compositions of granitoid crusts deviate from the mantle evolution line from about 3.3 to 2.0 Ga, the deviation declines between 2.0 and 1.3 Ga and again increases afterwards. Consideration of mantle-crust mixing models for granitoid genesis suggests that the noted isotopic trends are best explained if the rate of crust generation globally increased in two stages at around (or before) 3.3 and 1.3 Ga, whereas crustal differentiation was important in the evolution of the continental crust at 2.3-2.2 Ga and after 0.6 Ga. Reconciling the isotopic secular change in granitoid crust with that in sedimentary rocks suggests that sedimentary recycling has essentially taken place in continental settings rather than active margin settings and that the sedimentary mass significantly grew through addition of first-cycle sediments from young igneous basements, until after ∼1.3 Ga when sedimentary recycling became the dominant feature of sedimentary evolution. These findings, coupled with the lack of zircons older than 3.3 Ga in river sands, imply the emergence of large-scale continents at about 3.3 Ga with further rapid growth at around 1.3 Ga. This resulted in the major growth of the sedimentary mass between 3.3 and 1.3 Ga and the predominance of its cannibalistic recycling later.     

Growth rate of the preserved continental crust: II. Constraints from Hf and O isotopes in detrital zircons from Greater Russian Rivers

Detrital zircons from the Ob, Yenisey, Lena, Amur, Volga, Dnieper, Don and Pechora rivers have been analyzed for U-Th-Pb, O and Lu-Hf isotopes to constrain the growth rate of the preserved continental crust in Greater Russia. Four major periods of zircon crystallization, 0.1-0.55, 0.95-1.3, 1.45-2.0 and 2.5-2.9 Ga, were resolved from a compilation of 1366 zircon U/Pb ages. The Archean zircons have δ¹⁸O values lying between 4.53‰ and 7.33‰, whereas Proterozoic and Phanerozoic zircons have a larger range of δ¹⁸O values in each of the recognized U/Pb time intervals with maximum δ¹⁸O values up to 12‰. We interpret the zircons with δ¹⁸O between 4.5‰ and 6.5‰ to have been derived from a magmatic precursor that contains little or no sedimentary component. The variable δ¹⁸O values of the zircons were used to constrain the ¹⁷⁶Lu/¹⁷⁷Hf ratios of the crustal source region of the zircons, which, in turn, were used to calculate Hf model ages (T_DM^V). The crustal incubation time, the time difference between primitive crust formation (dated by T_DM^V) and crustal melting (dated by zircon U/Pb age), varies between 300 to 1000 Myr for the majority of analyzed zircon grains, but can be up to 2500 Myr. The average T_DM^V Hf model age weighted by the fraction of zircons in the river load is 2.12 Ga, which is in reasonable agreement with the area-weighted average of 2.25 Ga. The T_DM^V Hf model age crustal growth curve for zircons with mantle-like δ¹⁸O values (4.5-6.5‰), weighted by area, shows that growth of the Great Russian continental crust started at 4.2 Ga, and that there are two principal periods of crustal growth, 3.6-3.3 Ga and 0.8-0.6 Ga, which are separated by an interval of low but more or less continuous growth. An alternative interpretation, in which the average ¹⁷⁶Lu/¹⁷⁷Hf ratio (0.0115) of the continental crust is used for the Paleoproterozoic zircons from the Lena River, lowers the average T_DM^V age of these grains by about 500 Myr and delays the onset of significant crustal growth to 3.5 Ga.The two principal growth periods recognized in Greater Russia differ from those identified from the Gondwana and the Mississippi river basin, which show peaks at 1.7-1.9 and 2.9-3.1 Ga (Hawkesworth and Kemp, 2006a) and 1.6-2.2 and 2.9-3.4 Ga (Wang et al., 2009), respectively. The older 3.6-3.3 Ga or 3.5-3.3 Ga peak for Greater Russia is slightly older than the older Gondwana-Mississippi peaks, whereas the younger 0.8-0.6 Ga peak is distinctly younger than the youngest peak in either Gondwana or the Mississippi river basin. This suggests that the two major peaks of crustal growth identified in Gondwana and the Mississippi river basin may not be global periods of enhanced continental growth and that the major periods of crustal growth may differ from continent to continent.     

Formation and Evolution of Early Precambrian Continental Crust in Alxa Block

By the analysis of the published zircon U-Pb ages and Hf isotope data, this paper firstly presents a comprehensive review about the staggered growth and reworking of early Precambrian continental crust in Alxa Block. The results show that the ancient crustal remnants of Alxa Block was formed in Meso-Paleo Archean, which was recorded by 3.0~3.6 Ga detrital zircons and Hf model ages. The early crustal growth of Alxa Block could be traced back to early Paleo-archean. Currently, the oldest zircon U-Pb age is about 3.6 Ga. Analogous to the other places of North China Craton, the Alxa Block underwent two-stage crustal growth at 2.7~2.9 Ga and 2.5~2.6 Ga respectively, and the former might be wider. The ~2.5 Ga (TTG) tectono-magmatic event, which represents the North China continent’s cratonization, also existed in Alxa Block. The corresponding zircon Hf isotope data indicate that the TTGs were mainly derived by melting of 2.7~2.9 Ga juvenile crust, possibly by mixing with a certain ancient crust, and a small portion was produced by instant reworking of 2.5~2.6 Ga juvenile crust. Proceeding to Paleo-proterozoic, the Alxa Block underwent multi-stage tectono-magmatic events, approximately peaked at 2.30~2.35 Ga, 2.15~2.17 Ga, 2.00~2.10 Ga, 1.95~1.98 Ga and ~1.90 Ga. The continental crust was mainly formed by reworking of 2.7~2.9 Ga and 2.5~2.6 Ga juvenile crust, simultaneously by a fraction of ~2.1 Ga juvenile crust. In Paleo-proterozoic, not only the Archean crustal reworking but also the juvenile crustal growth existed in Alxa Block.     

Destruction of ancient lower crust through magma underplating beneath Jiaodong Peninsula, North China Craton: U-Pb and Hf isotopic evidence from granulite xenoliths

Zircons from granulite xenoliths entrained in a Late Cretaceous mafic dike in the Jiaodong Peninsula, North China Craton (NCC), show three distinct U-Pb age populations. Part of the old zircon grains yield discordant data that project to ages of about 2.4 to 2.5 Ga, a few grains indicate growth at about 2.0 Ga and a third group yield Cretaceous ages with peaks at 120 and 90 Ma. The oldest zircons give Hf T_DM model ages of 2.6-2.8 Ga. These results demonstrate the existence of original Archean lower crust in the Jiaodong region. Zircons of 2.0 Ga have similar Hf T_DM model ages as the Neoarchean-Paleoproterozoic grains, suggesting that these zircons were products of metamorphic recrystallization due to thermal event without juvenile input. Early Cretaceous zircons yield εHf(t) values of − 21 to − 12 and Late Cretaceous zircons large variable εHf(t) from + 4 to − 50. These data suggest that magmatic underplating occurred in the Neoarchean to Earliest Proterozoic lower crust of the NCC, both in the Early and Late Cretaceous. It is suggested that the Mesozoic magma underplating, which also provided the heat source for the voluminous Mesozoic magmatism in the NCC, significantly modified the composition of the Archean to Paleoproterozoic lower crust of the NCC.     

New evidence for ~ 4.45 Ga terrestrial crust from zircon xenocrysts in Ordovician ignimbrite in the North Qinling Orogenic Belt,China

Evidence for the earliest known terrestrial crust comes predominantly from Jack Hills in Western Australia, where hafnium isotopic results from > 3.8 Ga detrital zircons indicate crustal precursors as old as ~ 4.4–4.5 Ga. We present evidence from magmatic cores in > 3.9 Ga xenocrystic zircons from a felsic volcanic rock in the North Qinling Orogenic Belt, China, of similar Hf crustal model ages up to 4.45 Ga. These lie on the same Lu/Hf trajectory as the least disturbed Jack Hills and Apollo 14 zircons, therefore providing only the second example of the earliest known generation of continental crust on Earth. In addition, the rims of two zircon grains record later growth at 3.7 Ga and, when combined with the fact that the grains are incorporated in Paleozoic volcanic rocks, imply long-lived crustal residence within the basement of the North China Craton. These results therefore establish the wider distribution and survival of the most ancient crustal material on the Earth and highlight the possibility for the further discovery of ancient crustal remnants.     

Late Neoarchean reworking of the Mesoarchean crustal remnant in northern Liaoning,North China Craton: A U–Pb–Hf–O–Nd perspective

How the earth's crust formed and evolved during the Precambrian times is one of the key questions to decipher the evolution of the early Earth. As one of the few cratons containing well-preserved Eoarchean to Neoarchean basement on Earth, the North China Craton is an ideal natural laboratory to unravel the early crustal evolution. It is controversial whether the Archean tectonothermal events in this area represents reworking or growth of the continental crust. To solve this issue, we have compelled field-based mapping, zircon U–Pb dating by SHRIMP RG and LA–ICP–MS U–Pb, zircon SHRIMP SI oxygen and LA–MC–ICP–MS Hf isotope, and whole-rock Nd–O isotope analyses from the Archean granitoids in northern Liaoning, North China Craton. On the basis of zircon U–Pb isotopic dating and measured geological section investigation, two distinct magmatic suites as enclaves in the Jurassic granites are recognized, viz. a newly discovered 3.0 Ga crustal remnant and a 2.5 Ga granitoid. The Mesoarchean zircons from the 3.0 Ga granodioritic gneisses exhibit heterogeneous Hf isotopic compositions, with the most radiogenic analysis (ε_Hf(t) = +3.8) following the depleted mantle evolution array and the most unradiogenic ε_Hf(t) extending down to −3.4. This implies that both ancient continental crust at least as old as 3.4 Ga and depleted mantle contributed to the magma source of the protoliths of the Mesoarchean gneisses. The ε_Hf(t) values of the Neoarchean zircons from these gneisses overlap the 3.4–3.0 Ga zircon evolution trend, indicating that the ancient crustal materials have been reworked during the late Neoarchean. The Neoarchean zircons from the 2.5 Ga granitoids have a relatively small variation in the Hf isotope and are mainly plotted in the 3.0–2.8 Ga zircon evolution field. However, taking all the ε_Hf(t) values of the Neoarchean zircons into the consideration, we find that the Hf model age of the Neoarchean zircon does not represent the time of crustal growth or reworking but are artifacts of magma mixing. The interaction between the magmas derived from the ancient crustal materials and the depleted mantle is also supported by zircon O isotopic data and Hf–O isotopic modeling of the Neoarchean granitoids. Both Mesoarchean and late Neoarchean tectonothermal events involved synchronous crustal growth and reworking, which may be applicable to other parts of the world.     

Reworking of Earth's first crust: Constraints from Hf isotopes in Archean zircons from Mt. Narryer,Australia

Discoveries of >4 Ga old zircon grains in the northwest Yilgarn of Western Australia led to the conclusion that evolved crust formed on the Earth within the first few 100 Ma after accretion. Little is known, however, about the fate of the first crust that shaped early Earth's surface. Here we report combined solution and laser-ablation Lu–Hf–U–Pb isotope analyses of early Archean and Hadean detrital zircon grains from different rocks of the Narryer Gneiss Complex (NGC), Yilgarn Craton, Western Australia. The zircons show two distinct groups with separate evolutionary trends in their Hf isotopes. The majority of the zircon grains point to separation from a depleted mantle reservoir at ∼3.8–3.9 Ga. The second Hf isotope trend implies reworking of older Hadean zircon grains. The major trend starting at 3.8–3.9 Ga defined by the Hf isotopes corresponds to a Lu/Hf that is characteristic for felsic crust and consequently, the primary sources for these zircons presumably had a chemical composition characteristic of continental crust. Reworked Hadean crust appears to have evolved with a similar low Lu/Hf, such that the early crust was probably evolved with respect to Lu–Hf distributions. The co-variation of Hf isotopes vs. age in zircon grains from Mt. Narryer and Jack Hills zircon grains implies a similar crustal source for both sediments in a single, major crustal domain. Age spectra and associated Hf isotopes in the zircon grains strongly argue for ongoing magmatic reworking over hundreds of millions of years of the felsic crustal domain in which the zircon grains formed. Late-stage metamorphic zircon grains from the Meeberrie Gneiss unit yield a mean U–Pb age of 3294.5 ± 3.2 Ma with initial Hf isotopes that correspond to the evolutionary trend defined by older NGC zircon grains and overlap with other detrital zircon grains, proving their genetic relationship. This ‘Meeberrie event’ is interpret here as the last reworking event in the precursor domain before final deposition. The continuous magmatic activity in one crustal domain during the Archean is recorded by the U–Pb ages and Hf isotope systematics of zircon grains and implies reworking of existing crust. We suspect that the most likely driving force for such reworking of crustal material is ongoing crustal collision and subduction. A comparison of Hf isotope signatures of zircon grains from other Archean terranes shows that similar trends are recognised within all sampled Archean domains. This implies either a global trend in crustal growth and reworking, or a genetic connection of Archean terranes in close paleo-proximity to each other. Notably, the Archean Acasta gneiss (Canada) shows a similar reworking patterns to the Yilgarn Craton of Hadean samples implying either a common Hadean source or amalgamation at the Hadean–Archean transition.     

Early Archean crustal evolution of the Jack Hills Zircon source terrane inferred from Lu-Hf, Pb/Pb, and δO systematics of Jack Hills zircons

Several lines of isotopic evidence - the most direct of which is from Hadean Jack Hills zircons - suggest a very early history of crust formation on Earth that began by about 4.5 Ga. To constrain both the fate of the reservoir for this crust and the nature of crustal evolution in the sediment source region of the Jack Hills, Western Australia, during the early Archean, we report here initial ¹⁷⁶Hf/¹⁷⁷Hf ratios and δ¹⁸O systematics for <4 Ga Jack Hills zircons. In contrast to the significant number of Hadean zircons which contain highly unradiogenic ¹⁷⁶Hf/¹⁷⁷Hf requiring a near-zero Lu/Hf reservoir to have separated from the Earth’s mantle by 4.5 Ga, Jack Hills zircons younger than ca. 3.6 Ga are more radiogenic than -13ε (CHUR) at 3.4 Ga in contrast to projected values at 3.4 Ga of -20ε for the unradiogenic Hadean reservoir indicating that some later juvenile addition to the crust is required to explain the more radiogenic younger zircons. The shift in the Lu-Hf systematics together with a narrow range of mostly mantle-like δ¹⁸O values among the <3.6 Ga zircons (in contrast to the spread towards sedimentary δ¹⁸O among Hadean samples) suggests a period of transition between 3.6 and 4 Ga in which the magmatic setting of zircon formation changed and the highly unradiogenic low Lu/Hf Hadean crust ceased to be available for intracrustal reworking. Constraining the nature of this transition provides important insights into the processes of crustal reworking and recycling of the Earth’s Hadean crust as well as early Archean crustal evolution.     

Formation and evolution of the Archean continental crust of China: A review

The mainland of China is composed of the North China Craton, the South China Craton, the Tarim Craton and other young orogenic belts. Amongst the three cratons, the North China Craton has been studied most and noted for its widely-distributed Archean basement rocks. In this paper, we assess and compare the geology, rock types, formation age and geochemical composition features of the Archean basements of the three cratons. They have some common characteristics, including the fact that the crustal rocks prior to the Paleoarchean and the supracrustal rocks of the Neoarchean were preserved, and Tonalite-Trondhjemtite-Granodiorite (TTG) magmatism and tectono-magmatism occurred at about 2.7 Ga and about 2.5 Ga respectively. The Tarim Craton and the North China Craton show more similarities in their early Precambrian crustal evolution. Significant findings on the Archean basement of the North China Craton are concluded to be: (1) the tectonic regime in the early stage (>3.1 Ga) is distinct from modern plate tectonics; (2) the continental crust accretion occurred mostly from the late Mesoarchean to the early Neoarchean period; (3) a huge linear tectonic belt already existed in the late Neoarchean period, suggesting the beginning of plate tectonics; and (4) the preliminary cratonization had already been completed by about 2.5 Ga. Hadean detrital zircons were found at a total of nine locations within China. Most of them show clear oscillatory zoning, sharing similar textures with magmatic zircons from intermediate-felsic magmatic rocks. This indicates that a fair quantity of continental material had already developed on Earth at that time.     

华北克拉通东部及苏鲁造山带的地壳生长: 来自现代河流碎屑锆石的U-Pb定年和Hf同位素证据

来自年轻沉积物或现代河流的碎屑锆石是研究大陆地壳生长演化的理想载体.为揭示华北克拉通东部和苏鲁造山带大陆地壳的生长演化, 采集了中国东部大清河、潮白河、辽河、大沽河和胶莱河的5个地方的河沙样品, 并对分选出来的碎屑锆石进行了LA-ICP-MS和MC-LA-ICP-MS U-Pb定年和Hf同位素微区原位分析, 获得了396个锆石U-Pb谐和年龄及其对应的Hf同位素组成.2.4~2.5 Ga和1.8~1.9 Ga两个年龄特征峰指示大清河、潮白河和辽河的碎屑锆石来源于华北克拉通东部.辽河一部分100~500 Ma的锆石具有正的ε_Hf(t)值和年轻的Hf模式年龄, 显示出显生宙的地壳生长.苏鲁造山带大沽河和胶莱河的碎屑锆石U-Pb年龄分布相对比较复杂, 但锆石U-Pb年龄和Hf同位素特征表明其为华北克拉通和扬子克拉通的混合来源.来自大清河、潮白河和辽河的锆石U-Pb年龄和Hf同位素证据, 表明华北克拉通东部地壳生长的主要时期为2.4~3.0 Ga, 并在2.6~2.7 Ga时处于生长的最高峰, 次一级的生长期为1.3~2.3 Ga, 而在其他阶段几乎没有地壳的生长或者不明显.华北克拉通东部现存大陆地壳的80%来源于太古代和古元古代的生长, 而自古元古代开始大陆地壳的演化就以古老地壳的重熔再改造为主.此外, 大沽河碎屑锆石的Hf同位素组成揭示出苏鲁造山带在古生代(300~500 Ma)存在明显的地壳生长.      

Highly evolved Archean basement beneath the western Cathaysia Block, South China

How has the Earth’s continental crust evolved? Most of our knowledge comes from surface exposures, but zircon xenocrysts in volcanic rocks can provide samples of deeper crustal levels. The U-Pb and Hf-isotope systematics of xenocrystic zircons brought to the surface by the Cenozoic (48-49 Ma) Pingnan basaltic rocks and the Mesozoic (166 Ma) Pingle minettes in Guangxi Province (South China), suggest the presence of unexposed relict Archean basement beneath the western Cathaysia Block, where the oldest exposed rocks are Neoproterozoic-Phanerozoic in age. This basement has provided zircons with several distinct age populations: 3.85, 3.55, 3.3-3.2 and mainly 2.9-2.5 Ga. These have Hf depleted-mantle model ages (T_DM) of 2.5 to ?3.9 Ga. The oldest T_DM (∼3.9 Ga) shows the existence of Paleo- to Eoarchean components in this area. This relict basement experienced complex modification, including the addition of juvenile mantle material (with ε_Hf up to +12.7) at ca 3.6-3.2, 2.5, 1.0 and 0.5 Ga. The zircons also record thermal events that reworked (remelted) the older crustal components of the block at ca 2.0-1.8, 1.6-1.5 Ga and ∼80 Ma. Although these younger events have modified the Archean nature of the basement, it seems that they do not represent significant post-Archean crustal growth.     

Late Paleozoic provenance shift in the south-central North China Craton: Implications for tectonic evolution and crustal growth

U–Pb geochronologic and Hf isotopic results of seven sandstones collected from Late Carboniferous through Early Triassic strata of the south-central part of the North China Craton record a dramatic provenance shift near the end of the Late Carboniferous. Detrital zircons from the Late Carboniferous sandstones are dominated by the Early Paleozoic components with positive ε_Hf(t) values, implying the existence of a significant volume of juvenile crust at this age in the source regions. Moreover, there are also three minor peaks at ca. 2.5 Ga, 1.87 Ga and 1.1–0.9 Ga. Based on our new data, in conjunction with existing zircon ages and Hf isotopic data in the North China Craton (NCC), Central China Orogenic Belt (CCOB) and Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB), it can be concluded that Early Paleozoic and Neoproterozoic detritus in the south-central NCC were derived from the CCOB. Zircons with ages of 1.9–1.7 Ga were derived from the NCC. However, the oldest components can't be distinguished, possibly from either the NCC or the CCOB, or both. In contrast, detrital zircons from the Permian and Triassic sandstones are characterized by three major groups of U–Pb ages (2.6–2.4 Ga, 1.9–1.7 Ga and Late Paleozoic ages). Specially, most of the Late Paleozoic zircons show negative ε_Hf(t) values, similar to the igneous zircons from intrusive rocks of the Inner Mongolia Paleo-Uplift (IMPU), indicating that the Late Paleozoic detritus were derived from the northern part of the NCC. This provenance shift could be approximately constrained at the end of the Late Carboniferous and probably hints that tectonic uplift firstly occurred between the CCOB and the NCC as a result of the collision between the South and North Qinling microcontinental terranes, and then switched to the domain between the CAOB and the NCC. Additionally, on the basis of Lu–Hf isotopic data, we reveal the pre-Triassic crustal growth history for the NCC. In comparison among the three crustal growth curves obtained from modern river sands, our samples, and the Proterozoic sedimentary rocks, we realize that old components are apparently underestimated by zircons from the younger sedimentary rocks and modern river sands. Hence, cautions should be taken when using this method to investigate growth history of continental crust.     

甘肃敦煌水峡口地区前寒武纪岩石的锆石U-Pb年龄、Hf同位素组成及其地质意义

敦煌杂岩位于塔里木克拉通的东部,探寻和研究其中的早前寒武纪地质体对于探讨敦煌地块早前寒武纪地壳的形成和演化及其构造归属等问题具有重要的意义.甘肃敦煌水峡口地区的敦煌杂岩主要由英云闪长质片麻岩、花岗闪长质片麻岩以及表壳岩石组成.利用LA-ICP-MS锆石U-Pb定年方法测得水峡口英云闪长片麻岩和花岗片麻岩原岩的形成年龄分别为2561±16Ma和2510±22Ma,确证了在敦煌杂岩中存在太古宙岩石.此外,还获得斜长角闪岩的变质年龄为1806±14Ma,推测其原岩岩浆可能来自古老岩石圈地幔的部分熔融.根据已有的资料提出在古元古代晚期(1.80 ～ 1.85Ga)敦煌杂岩经历了一期较广泛的变质作用.锆石Hf同位素显示～2.5Ga的岩石年龄在敦煌地块代表新太古代晚期重要地壳生长时期,而～1.8Ga的构造-热事件则是以古老地壳物质循环再造为主.这些资料显示敦煌地块和华北克拉通在早前寒武纪经历了类似的地壳形成和演化过程,且共同记录了全球性的Columbia碰撞造山事件信息.     

鄂尔多斯盆地周缘地壳形成与演化历史:来自锆石U-Pb年龄与Hf同位素组成的证据

锆石U-Pb定年及Hf同位素测定结果表明,鄂尔多斯盆地周缘的华北板块北缘、兴蒙造山系及扬子板块-秦岭-大别-苏鲁造山带等构造单元系统具有明显不同的形成与演化历史。华北板块北缘锆石年龄平均值为1 837 Ma,最强烈的岩浆活动出现于2 200~1 800 Ma,该期锆石约占全部的40%;次为强烈的岩浆活动在2 800~2 200 Ma,其众数在全部锆石中约占30%;1 500~1 200 Ma、500~100 Ma这两个阶段形成的锆石在全区所占比例各约为15%。华北板块北缘最突出的特征是基本不含1 000~700 Ma期间形成的锆石,>3 000 Ma的锆石在全区分布极为有限。锆石Hf同位素亏损地幔模式年龄表明华北板块北缘平均值为2.55 Ga,较U-Pb平均年龄老,说明2 200~1 800 Ma期间形成的锆石含有较多的古老地壳再循环组分。Hf亏损地幔模式年龄最强峰值约为2.8 Ga,与全岩Nd亏损地幔模式年龄的峰值相一致,Hf模式年龄为3.0~2.25 Ga的颗粒占全部的近95%,证明华北板块北缘的地壳增生主要在太古宙至古元古代期间。Hf同位素亏损地幔模式年龄>3.0 Ga的锆石颗粒所占比例不到0.1%,另外近5%锆石的模式年龄分布于中元古代。晚古生代-中生代所形成的锆石均是先存地壳组分,尤其是中元古代增生地壳的熔融作用形成。兴蒙造山系中锆石U-Pb年龄平均值为497 Ma,最强峰分布于石炭纪(约320 Ma),石炭纪-二叠纪末(350~250 Ma)形成的锆石所占比例达30%以上。新元古代至早古生代(600~440 Ma)形成的锆石占全部锆石的55%以上,而中元古代末-新元古代期间(1 200~600 Ma)形成的锆石在全区仅占4%。中元古代以前形成的锆石非常有限,说明该区最早形成的地壳组分在兴蒙造山系的形成过程中较充分地参与到后期的岩浆作用过程中。兴蒙造山系中锆石相应的Hf同位素亏损地幔模式年龄平均为1.13 Ga,明显较相应的U-Pb年龄老,最强峰值出现于约0.6 Ga。Hf亏损地幔模式年龄为0.7~0.28 Ga的颗粒在兴蒙造山系所占比例达57%,证明该区最强烈的地壳增生发生于新元古代至古生代期间。Hf同位素亏损地幔模式年龄分布于1.5~0.7 Ga的锆石在全区约占38%,说明此期间也是该区地壳较强烈的增生期。Hf亏损地幔模式年龄大于1.5 Ga的锆石所占比例不到5%,古生代以后兴蒙造山系也基本没有明显的地壳增生。扬子与秦岭-大别-苏鲁造山带构造单元中的锆石U-Pb年龄平均为799 Ma,年龄为1 300~750 Ma的锆石在全部锆石中约占70%。晚古生代-燕山期形成的锆石约占20%。年龄在3 500~2 650 Ma、2 118~1 680 Ma的锆石在该区各约占5%。结合扬子与秦岭-大别-苏鲁造山带平均为1.56 Ga的Nd亏损地幔模式年龄特征,说明1 300~750 Ma期间该区较强烈的岩浆作用事件中有较多的古老地壳组分加入其中。锆石U-Pb年龄及Hf同位素组成均说明鄂尔多斯盆地周缘各构造单元具有不同的形成演化历史。地壳是幕式增长的,但各构造单元每幕发生的时间、强度存在明显差别。因此,由盆地中不同时代地层中碎屑锆石U-Pb年龄及Hf同位素组成及全岩Nd同位素特征的系统研究可反演盆地物源供给与周围构造单元之间的关系。     

龙泉关剪切带眼球状花岗质片麻岩锆石U-Pb年代学和Lu-Hf同位素特征及其地质意义

恒山五台阜平地区地处华北克拉通中部造山带的中段,早前寒武纪地体出露较好,是解析华北克拉通早前寒武纪演化过程的最佳地段。龙泉关剪切带位于五台杂岩和阜平杂岩的交接部位,其主要岩石类型为眼球状花岗质片麻岩、变粒岩和斜长角闪岩。本文利用LA-ICP-MS方法对龙泉关剪切带中的眼球状花岗质片麻岩进行了锆石U-Pb年龄和Lu-Hf同位素的测试。结果显示,龙泉关眼球状花岗质片麻岩原岩结晶年龄为(2 547±7) Ma,其εHf(t)值介于+2.7~+9.2,表明其源区主要为相对年轻的地壳物质,与五台地区新太古代花岗岩非常相似。龙泉关花岗质眼球状片麻岩中锆石两阶段Hf模式年龄(TDM2)为2 477~2 872 Ma,具有2.58 Ga、2.71 Ga和2.81 Ga三个峰值,记录了华北克拉通新太古代初始地壳生长事件。     

从岩石Sm—Nd同位素模式年龄论北秦岭地壳增生和地壳深部性质

北秦岭各岩类１１６个样品Ｓｍ－Ｎｄ同位素模式年龄（ｔＤＭ）变化于０．９～２．４Ｇａ之间，反映北秦岭地壳主要形成于元古代，０．９Ｇａ之后没有明显大规模新生地壳的形成。在Ｎｄ模式年龄分布图上出现２．０５Ｇａ、１．４０Ｇａ和１．０５Ｇａ三个明显的峰值，它们相应地代表北秦岭地壳的三个增生期。与华北克拉通南缘地壳存在２．６５Ｇａ、２．１０Ｇａ和１．４０Ｇａ三个增生期相对比，表明从华北克拉通南缘到北秦岭，地壳侧向增生是逐渐发展的，这是一个统一典型陆块的地壳增长过程，而北秦岭原来应属于华北的一部分。另外，从北秦岭花岗岩揭示的北秦岭地壳深部性质看，北秦岭地壳深部在１．０Ｇａ～１．２Ｇａ左右的板底垫托作用是相当明显的，而在晚古生代后可能又受到区域折离层作用的影响。     

Eastern Ancient Terrane of the North China Craton

Based on the spatial distribution of ancient rocks and zircons, three ancient terranes older than ca. 2.6 Ga have recently been identified in the North China Craton, namely the Eastern, Southern, and Central Ancient Terranes. The Eastern Ancient Terrane is the best studied and understood of the three ancient terranes. It has a long geological history back to ca. 3.8 Ga ago and includes the areas of Anshan-Benxi, eastern Hebei, eastern Shandong and western Shandong. In Anshan-Benxi, several different types of 3.8 Ga rocks were discovered together with 3.1-3.7 Ga rocks, whereas 2.9-3.0 Ga K-rich granites and 2.5 Ga syenogranite occur on larger scales. In eastern Hebei, 3.0-3.4 Ga rocks and older detrital and xenocrystic zircons were identified. In eastern Shandong, there are a large volumes of 2.7 Ga and 2.9 Ga rocks. In western Shandong, early Neoarchean(2.6-2.7 Ga) intrusive and supracrustal rocks are widely distributed. Whole-rock Nd and zircon Hf isotope data suggest that both mantle additions and crustal recycling played important roles within the Eastern Ancient Terrane during almost every tectono-magmatic event. Most BIFs in the North China Craton are late Neoarchean in age and are distributed on continental crust along the western margin of the Eastern Ancient Terrane, probably suggesting that a stable environment was one of the key factors for the formation of large-scale BIFs.     

澜沧江河流沉积物碎屑锆石U-Pb年龄、Hf同位素组成及其地质意义

为研究澜沧江沉积物的物质来源及相邻地块的地壳生长和演化规律,利用LA-MC-ICP-MS分析技术,对澜沧江河流沉积物碎屑锆石进行了U-Pb年龄和Hf同位素研究。结果表明：锆石U-Pb年龄主要有5个年龄段,分别是＜177 Ma、201~418 Ma、428~544 Ma、581~1189 Ma和1406~2533 Ma,主要峰值为260 Ma、788 Ma、1 827 Ma和2 474 Ma。其年龄分布特征与北羌塘地块的年龄分布非常一致,说明澜沧江沉积物主要来源于北羌塘地块;结合Hf同位素分析结果,能够反映源区北羌塘地块的形成与演化历史。新太古代-中元古代是北羌塘地块从亏损地幔物质增生的地壳持续生长阶段,它们构成现今北羌塘地块全部地壳物质的78%以上,此后直到0.64 Ga,北羌塘地块的地壳增生作用基本结束。