Planktic Foraminiferal Biostratigraphy of the Cretaceous Oceanic Red Beds in Kangmar,Southern Tibet,China

The planktic foraminifera of the Chuangde Formation (Upper Cretaceous Oceanic Red Beds, CORBs) as exposed at Tianbadong section, Kangmar, southern Tibet has been firstly studied for a detailed for a detailed biostratigraphy elaboration. A rich and well-preserved planktic foraminifera were recovered from the Chuangde Formation of the Tianbadong section and the Globotruncanita elevata, Globotruncana ventricosa, Radotruncana calcarata, Globotruncanella havanensis, Globotruncana aegyptiaca, Gansserina gansseri and Abathomphalus mayaroensis zones have been recognized. The planktic foraminiferal assemblage points to an early Campanian to Maastrichitian age for the CORBs of the eastern North Tethyan Himalayan sub-belt, which also provides a better understanding of the shifting progress of the Indian Plate to the north and the evolution of the Neotethyan ocean. The lithostratigraphy of the Chuangde Formation of the Tianbadong section comprises two lithological sequences observed in ascending succession: a lower unit (the Shale Member) mainly composed of purple (cherry-red, violet-red) shales with interbedded siltstones and siliceous rocks; and an upper unit (the Limestone Member) of variegated limestones. The strata of the Chuangde Formation in the Tianbadong section are similar to CORBs in other parts of the northern Tethyan Himalaya area of Asia (Gyangze, Sa’gya, Sangdanlin, northern Zanskar, etc.). The fossil contents of the Chuangde Formation in the sections (CORBs) studied provide a means of correlation with the zonation schemes for those of the northern Tethyan Himalayan sub-belt and the Upper Cretaceous of the southern Tethyan Himalayan sub-belt. Paleogeographic reconstruction for the Late Cretaceous indicates that the Upper Cretaceous Chuangde Formation (CORBs) and correlatable strata in northern Zanskar were representative of slope to basinal deposits, which were situated in the northern Tethyan Belt. Correlatable Cretaceous strata in Spiti and Gamba situated in the southern Tethyan Belt in contrast were deposited in shelf environments along the Tethyan Himalayan passive margin. CORBs are most likely formed by the oxidation of Fe(II)-enriched, anoxic deep ocean water near the chemocline that separated the oxic oceanic surface from the anoxic.     

地球圈层之间相互作用对白垩纪大洋缺氧与富氧过程的制约

白垩纪诸多地质事件中,以黑色页岩为特征的大洋缺氧事件和以红层为特征的大洋富氧环境尤其引人关注。本文探讨了白垩纪大洋从缺氧到富氧转化的过程与机制,认为上述沉积事件是地球圈层之间相互作用的结果。白垩纪岩石圈剧烈的岩浆活动,是缺氧、富氧事件发生的源动力,水圈、大气圈、生物圈的共同作用是沉积事件发生的结果。具体过程为:白垩纪大规模的火山喷发,改变了海陆面积的对比,并引起地球内部大量热能释放和大气中CO_2气体浓度的升高,最终导致大气温度的升高。海水温度的升高和CO_2浓度的增加导致海洋环境中溶解O_2的降低,缺氧事件随之而产生。同时,海底岩浆喷发在海底产生大量的富含铁元素的基性和超基性岩石,通过海底风化和热液活动,铁元素从岩石圈进入水圈。海水中的铁元素是海洋浮游植物宝贵的营养盐类,其含量的增加可激发浮游植物的大规模繁盛,而这一生命过程可以吸收海水中大量的CO_2,并且产生等量的O_2。随着海水中O_2浓度的不断升高,以富含Fe3+的红色沉积物为特征的海洋富氧环境出现。藏南和深海钻探、大洋钻探典型剖面的数据证实大洋缺氧和富氧发生的韵律性,即缺氧事件之后往往伴随富氧环境的出现。研究认为,白垩纪大洋缺氧和富氧事件是同一原因导致的不同结果,地球圈层相互作用是其根本制约因素。由岩浆活动引起的缺氧事件和同样由其造成的富氧环境,其机制存在明显的差异,前者以物理、化学过程为主,后者除此之外还演绎了更为复杂的生物-海洋地球化学过程。     

Cretaceous Oceanic Redbeds: Implications for Paleoclimatologyand Paleoceanography

The Cretaceous is among the most unusual eras in the geological past. Geoscience communities have been having great concerns with geological phenomena within this period, for example carbonate platforms and black shales in the Early and Middle Cretaceous respectively, during the last decades. But few people have paid any attention to the set of pelagic redbeds lying on the black shales, not to mention the applications to paleoclimatology and paleoceanography. It is shown by the sedimentary records of redbeds, that they were deposited around the CCD, with both a higher content of iron and much lower concentrations of organic carbon, which implies conditions with a     

Cretaceous black shale and the oceanic red beds:Process and mechanisms of oceanic anoxic events and oxic environment

The Cretaceous is an important period in which many geological events occurred, especially the OAEs (oceanic anoxic events) which are characterized by black shale, and the oxic process characterized by CORBs (Cretaceous oceanic red beds). In this paper, the causative mechanism behind the formation of black shale and the oceanic red beds are described in detail. This may explain how the oceanic environment changed from anoxic to oxic in the Cretaceous period. It is suggested that these two different events happened because of the same cause. On the one hand, the large-scale magma activities in Cretaceous caused the concentration of CO₂, the release of the inner energy of the earth, superficial change in the ocean-land, and finally, the increase of atmospheric temperature. These changes implied the same tendency as the oceanic water temperature show, and caused the decrease in O₂ concentration in the Cretaceous ocean, and finally resulted in the occurrence of the OAEs. On the other hand, violent and frequent volcanic eruptions in the Cretaceous produced plenty of Fe-enriched lava on the seafloor. When the seawater reacted with the lava, the element Fe became dissolved in seawater. Iron, which could help phytoplankton grow rapidly, is a micronutrient essential to the synthesis of enzymes required for photosynthesis in the oceanic environment. Phytoplankton, which grows in much of the oceans around the world, can consume carbon dioxide in the air and the ocean. Meanwhile, an equal quantity of oxygen can be produced by the phytoplankton during its growth. Finally, the oxic environment characterized by red sediment rich in Fe³⁺ appeared. The anoxic and oxic conditions in the Cretaceous ocean were caused by volcanic activities, but they stemmed from different causative mechanisms. The former was based on physical and chemical processes, while the latter involved more complicated bio-oceanic-geochemical processes. __________ Translated from Marine Geology & Quaternary Geology, 2007, 27(3): 69–75 [译自: 海洋地质与第四纪地质]     

鲁西北西向断裂系晚中生代活动的几何学、运动学及年代学研究

鲁西隆起区发育有大量的北西向脆性断裂。依据野外断裂构造的几何学、运动学详细解析认为,北西向断裂系经历了早期的右行压剪、右行张剪,以及后期的左行压剪等不同性质的构造活动。由与北西向断裂活动相伴生的同期侵入岩体的 K-Ar测试结果分析,北西向断裂系在距今约160 Ma及距今130~110 Ma分别经历了右行压剪与右行张剪构造活动;通过分布在隆起区不同样品的磷灰石裂变径迹数据分析、冷却史反演,厘定鲁西地体在距今90~80 Ma存在一次区域性快速冷却构造事件,该构造事件与北西向断裂系的左行压剪构造活动相对应。     

鲁西北西向断裂系晚中生代活动的几何学、运动学及年代学研究

鲁西隆起区发育有大量的北西向脆性断裂.依据野外断裂构造的几何学、运动学详细解析,认为北西向断裂系经历了早期的右行压剪、右行张剪,以及后期的左行压剪等不同性质的构造活动.由与北西向断裂活动相伴生的同期侵入岩体的 K-Ar测试结果分析,北西向断裂系在距今约160 Ma及距今130～110 Ma分别经历了右行压剪与右行张剪构造活动;通过分布在隆起区不同样品的磷灰石裂变径迹数据分析、冷却史反演,厘定鲁西地体在距今90～80 Ma存在一次区域性快速冷却构造事件,该构造事件与北西向断裂系的左行压剪构造活动相对应.     

特提斯构造域与油气勘探

Ｋｌｉｍｍｉ和Ｕｌｍｉｓｈｅｋ（１９９１）将全球已探明的油气可采储量分为四大域：特提斯域、北方欧亚域、南方冈瓦纳域和太平洋域。其中特提斯域内的油气储量主要分布在中东地区。板块学说进入大地之后,给特提斯的研究带来了新的启示。阿尔卑斯－喜马拉邪念造山带是新特提斯海消亡的产物,而现今提出的古特提斯和基梅里造山带已突破Ｓｕｅｓｓ原提出的时空范围,其演化时间已延长到古生代,地域上已达亚洲中纬度地区。中国的青     

阿尔卑斯-喀尔巴阡上白垩统大洋红层特征与对比

在前人研究的基础上,从时代、岩性、古生物、沉积速率、沉积环境等方面对阿尔卑斯—喀尔巴阡地区的上白垩统大洋红层进行了详细对比,发现研究区内上白垩统大洋红层最早出露于Cenomanian期,最晚可延续至古近纪,且在Campanian期出露最为广泛,其岩性以灰岩、泥灰岩和含泥灰岩为主,生物化石以浮游有孔虫为主,沉积速率较低且在各地不尽相似,在CCD面上、下均可以出现,沉积环境一般是大陆边缘盆地、斜坡和大洋盆地等远洋、半远洋环境。通过比较分析,为进一步深入研究上白垩统大洋红层提供较为全面的基础资料。     

特提斯喜马拉雅白垩纪层序地层分析

白垩纪是新特提斯演化过程中一个极其重要的阶段，其沉积蕴涵着新特提斯早期演变的丰富信息。在对典型剖面进行层序地层分析的基础上，结合前人的研究成果，笔者分别对特提斯喜马拉雅沉积带南、北两亚带白垩系进行较为详细的露头层序地层学研究，在沉积南带识别出为24个三级层序、5个层序组(亚二级层序)、2个二级层序(中层序)，在北亚带识别出22个三级层序、5个层序组(亚二级层序)、2个二级层序(中层序)。特提斯喜马拉雅早白垩世层序地层总体表现为海进的退积序列，反映了特提斯洋壳的扩张阶段；晚白垩世层序地层总体表现为海退的进积序列，反映了特提斯洋盆地持续收缩和长期海平面逐步下降的过程，应是洋壳俯冲阶段的产物。整个白垩纪显示出一次极其明显的海水进退旋回，是特提斯洋从扩张到收缩这一演化过程的客观反映。由对层序特征、沉积特征及古生物特征等的分析所得出的特提斯喜马拉雅在白垩纪的海水进退规程，与同期的全球海平面的变化基本一致。     

New biostratigraphic data from the Cretaceous Bolinxiala Formation in Zanda, southwestern Tibet of China, and their paleogeographic and paleoceanographic implications

Planktonic foraminiferal fossil assemblages identified from the Bolinxiala Formation in Bolin, Zanda, southwestern Tibet of China, determine its age from latest Albian to Maastrichtian. The fossil contents of the Bolinxiala Formation allow its correlation with successions across a platform-to-basin transect of the Late Cretaceous Tethyan Himalaya passive margin. The ocean anoxic event at the Cenomanian–Turonian transition (OAE2) is located at the Whiteinella archaeocretacaea biozone in Zanda, but lithologically it is characterized by grey and bioturbated limestone, implying that during the OAE2 the shallow-water environments of the Tethyan Himalayan carbonate platform remained oxic. Paleogeographic reconstruction indicates that the Upper Cretaceous Oceanic Red Beds (CORBs) in southern Tibet are restricted to the slope and basinal environments but they are entirely missing in the shelf environments. This phenomenon suggests the formation of CORBs by oxidation of Fe(II)-enriched anoxic deep ocean seawater at the chemocline that separated the oxic surface ocean from anoxic deep ocean. For depositional environments above the chemocline, no CORBs would be expected. Because of the chemocline instability across different sedimentary basins, CORBs may be significantly diachronous, consistent with the occurrence of CORBs documented from global sedimentary basins.     

沉积物中铁氧化物的定量方法及其 在白垩纪大洋红层中的应用

赤铁矿和针铁矿是自然界中最稳定的两种铁氧化物,广泛存在于地球的各个圈层。很多沉积物的颜色都是由它们引 起的,它们的形成和保存具有重要的环境指示意义。实验室中赤铁矿和针铁矿的表征和鉴定手段很多,但受其含量低、结 晶差、颗粒细小难分离等因素的困扰以及某些测试方法自身的限制,能用于铁氧化物定量分析的方法很少。文中就常用的 基于X射线衍射（XRD） 和漫反射光谱（DRS） 的铁氧化物定量方法进行了系统评价。在定性分析的基础上,采用基于 XRD的K值法获得西藏床得剖面红色页岩中赤铁矿的含量为3.81％~8.11％,采用DRS与多元线性回归相结合的方法获得北 大西洋ODP1049C孔12X岩芯段棕色层中赤铁矿和针铁矿的含量分别为0.13％~0.82％和0.22%~0.81％,橙色层中赤铁矿和 针铁矿的含量分别为0.19%~0.46％和0.29%~0.67％。与其它分析结果的比较表明,这两种定量方法在白垩纪大洋红层中的 应用是可行的。但在实际应用时,首先要通过XRD和DRS相结合来提高定性分析的准确性,然后通过综合分析铁氧化物的 预判含量范围和结晶程度来选择合适的定量方法。     

Upper Cretaceous pelagic red beds,implications for paleoclimate and pale oc eanography

Members of IGCP 463, Upper Cretaceous Oceanic Red Beds: Response to Ocean/Climate Global Change (CORBs) held their second workshop near the Black Sea in Bartin, Turkey. In addition to discussion of results and plans, the participants examined exposures of pelagic red beds in northern Turkev.     

沉积记录与白垩纪地球表层系统变化

地球表层系统是由岩石圈、大气圈、水圈和生物圈相互耦合和变化组成的复杂巨系统。白垩纪是地球表层系统研究的典范,在地球表层各圈层发生了众多重大地质事件。晚白垩世巨大的地幔热异常引起海底扩张速度变快,导致大量海底高原和海山的形成;同时,冈瓦纳大陆裂解,南北大西洋贯通,新的大洋水道形成,可能造成大洋环流格局的大变化。洋壳体积的增加可能使白垩纪海平面比现在高出200~300 m,大规模海侵也在晚白垩世中期达到最大范围。在这个过程中,火山作用释放出来的营养物质和火山气体的反馈作用造成的大量陆地营养物质的流入共同促使大洋水体富营养化和普遍缺氧,造成“大洋缺氧事件”。CO2浓度的升高（为现今的4~10倍）是火山排气作用的直接结果,其“温室效应”也被认为可能是促成白垩纪大气和海水高温的重要原因（高于现在10 ℃）。大洋红层（CORB）是最新提出并被广泛接受的白垩纪重要地质事件,被定义为一套分布在从外陆棚到CCD面之下深水盆地的,在富氧、低生产力和贫营养条件下较低速沉积形成的品红-红色-棕色的细粒远洋沉积物。这些发生于地球表层各圈层的重大地质事件以能量循环的方式（具体表现为C、S、P、H、O等元素循环）相互耦合和变化共同支撑着地球表层系统的运转。但是科学界对这些重大地质事件的成因机制及其所引起的全球变化性质还没有形成一致意见,原因之一就是缺乏对陆相沉积记录的研究。陆相白垩系的广泛发育和“松辽盆地白垩系科学钻探”工程的顺利实施共同构成了中国在白垩纪地球表层系统研究上的地域和材料优势,结合中国在白垩纪地球表层系统重大地质事件研究中已经形成的学术优势,从地球系统科学的角度出发,通过多学科交叉研究将是解决以上问题的关键。     

Burial Records of Reactive Iron in Cretaceous Black Shales and Oceanic Red Beds from Southern Tibet

One of the new directions in the field of Cretaceous research is to elucidate the mechanism of the sedimentary transition from the Cretaceous black shales to oceanic red beds. A chemical sequential extraction method was applied to these two types of rocks from southern Tibet to investigate the burial records of reactive iron. Results indicate that carbonate-associated iron and pyrite are relatively enriched in the black shales, but depleted or absent in red beds. The main feature of the reactive iron in the red beds is relative enrichment of iron oxides （largely hematite）, which occurred during syn-depostion or early diagenesis. The ratio between iron oxides and the total iron indicates an oxygen-enriched environment for red bed deposition. A comparison between the reactive iron burial records and proxies of paleo-productivity suggests that paleo-productivity decreases when the ratio between iron oxides and the total iron increases in the red beds. This phenomenon could imply that the relationship between marine redox and productivity might be one of the reasons for the sedimentary transition from Cretaceous black shale to oceanic red bed deposition.     

Response of Reactive Phosphorus Burial to the Sedimentary Transition from Cretaceous Black Shales to Oceanic Red Beds in Southern Tibet

The mechanism of sedimentary transition from the Cretaceous black shales to the oceanic red beds is a new and important direction of Cretaceous research. Chemical sequential extraction is applied to study the burial records of reactive phosphorus in the black shale of the Gyabula Formation and oceanic red beds of the Chuangde Formation, Southern Tibet. Results indicate that the principal reactive phosphorus species is the authigenic and carbonate-associated phosphorus (CaP) in the Gyabula Formation and iron oxides-associated phosphorus (FeP) in the Chuangde Formation which accounts for more than half of their own total phosphorus content. While the authigenic and carbonate-associated phosphorus (CaP) is almost equal in the two Formations; the iron oxides-associated phosphorus is about 1.6 times higher in the Chuangde Formation than that in the Gyabula Formation resulting in a higher content of the total phosphorus in the Chuangde Formation. According to the observations on the marine phosphorus cycle in Modern Ocean, it is found that preferential burial and regeneration of reactive phosphorus corresponds to highly oxic and reducing conditions, respectively, leading to the different distribution of phosphorus in these two distinct type of marine sediments. It is the redox-sensitive behavior of phosphorus cycle to the different redox conditions in the ocean and the controlling effects of phosphorus to the marine production that stimulate the local sedimentary transition from the Cretaceous black shale to the oceanic red beds.     

Oceanic evidence for the mechanism of rapid northern hemisphere glaciation

The oxygen isotopic stage 5/4 boundary in deep-sea sediments marks a prominent interval of northern hemisphere ice-sheet growth that lasted about 10,000 yr. During much of this rapid ice growth, the North Atlantic Ocean from at least 40°N to 60°N maintained warm sea-surface temperatures, within 1° to 2°C of today's subpolar ocean. This oceanic warmth provided a local source of moisture for ice-sheet accretion on the adjacent continents. The unusually strong thermal gradient off the east coast of North America (an “interglacial” ocean alongside a “glacial” land mass) also should have directed low-pressure storms from warm southern latitudes north-ward toward the Laurentide Ice Sheet. In addition, minimal calving of ice into the North Atlantic occurred during most of the stage 5/4 transition, indicative of ice retention within the continents. Diminished summer and autumn insolation, a warm subpolar ocean, and minimal calving of ice are conducive to rapid and extensive episodes of northern hemisphere ice-sheet growth.     

Identification of the base of the lower-to-middle Campanian Globotruncana ventricosa Zone: Comments on reliability and global correlations

The reliability of the first appearance datum of Globotruncana ventricosa as biozonal marker for the Campanian is discussed. The taxonomy and species concept of G. ventricosa and of Globotruncana tricarinata, that has been either regarded as junior synonym of Globotruncana linneiana or of G. ventricosa, are examined to avoid misidentifications, and one species is here formally described as new, Globotruncana neotricarinata nov. sp. The tropical and subtropical planktic foraminiferal assemblages from the Bottaccione section (Gubbio, Italy), from Deep Sea Drillig Project (DSDP) Site 146 (Caribbean Sea, central Atlantic Ocean), and from Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Hole 1210B (Shatsky Rise, northwestern Pacific Ocean) are analyzed for the presence of biostratigraphic markers. Lowest and highest occurrence data have been checked in thin sections and washed residues in the Bottaccione section. The comparative biostratigraphic analysis of the planktic foraminiferal distribution highlights: 1) the absence of G. ventricosa at the stratigraphic level at which it is supposed to first occur in the Tethyan area, 2) the presence of transitional specimens resembling G. ventricosa and thus erroneously used to identify the base of the G. ventricosa Zone, 3) the presence of a good sequence of bioevents that appear to be promising for regional and global correlations such as the appearance of Globotruncanita atlantica, Contusotruncana plummerae and the disappearance of Hendersonites carinatus. The correlation potential of these bioevents has been verified across latitudes by studying the Campanian planktic foraminiferal assemblage in pelagic sediments drilled on coastal Tanzania (western Indian Ocean), and at the deep-sea ODP Hole 762C (Exmouth Plateau, western Indian Ocean), that were located at 30°S and 47°S in the Late Cretaceous, respectively. Besides the known diachronous first appearance of G. ventricosa in the Southern Ocean sites, results confirm the difficulty in using G. ventricosa as zonal marker in the tropical and subtropical areas, and the validity of the first appearance datum of C. plummerae for regional and global correlations.     

Cretaceous oceanic anoxic events (OAEs) recorded in the northern margin of Africa as possible oil and gas shale potential in Tunisia: An overview

Abstract

Significant attention has been given, during the last decade, to Palaeozoic unconventional oil and gas shale in northern Africa where the productive Palaeozoic basins are located. New tentative strategies shed light on Mesozoic unconventional plays represented by Cretaceous shale reservoirs. In most petroleum systems the proven Cretaceous oceanic anoxic events (OAEs), represented mainly by the Fahdene and Bahloul Formations, played the main role in hydrocarbon generation with good distribution. Their deposition was restricted to the early Aptian (Bedoulian), the early/late Albian, and the Cenomanian–Turonian transition. Additional black shales have been detailed for the first time in Tunisia which relate to the Valanginian Weissert and late Hauterivian Faraoni events. Biostratigraphic and complete geochemical reviews have been undertaken from published papers and unpublished internal reports to better assess these important source intervals. These black shale levels, pertaining to OAEs, were deposited in almost deep marine environments during short-lived periods of anoxia (ca. 2 Ma). In the course of this review, thickness, distribution, and maturity maps have been established for each level using well data from published sources.     

Constraining the colouration mechanisms of Cretaceous Oceanic Red Beds using diffuse reflectance spectroscopy

We have used diffuse reflectance spectroscopy to investigate the colouration mechanisms of hematite in Cretaceous Oceanic Red Beds (CORBs). Data for samples of CORBs from the Chuangde section in Tibet, Vispi Quarry section in Italy, and Core 12X of Ocean Drilling Program Hole 1049C in the North Atlantic were compared with calibration datasets obtained for hematite in different crystalline forms (kidney and specular hematite) and calcite matrix. Spectra for hematite in either pure form or in calibration datasets show that the centre of the reflection peak shifts to a longer wavelength and depth (D) decreases as the crystallinity of the hematite increases. Compared with specular hematite, the presence of just 0.5% of kidney hematite can cause a much deeper absorption peak and greater redness value, which indicates that kidney hematite has a higher colouration capacity than specular hematite. However, both kidney and specular hematite exhibit a good correlation between the redness value for each calibration dataset and the absorption peak depth. In all three studied sections, hematite is the main iron oxide mineral responsible for colouration. Spectral features such as absorption peak depth and peak centre reveal that hematite crystallinity gradually decreases from red shale to limestone to marl. Based on a spectral comparison of red shale in the Chuangde section before and after citrate–bicarbonate–dithionite (CBD) treatment, we found that two forms of hematite are present: a fine-grained and dispersed form, and a detrital form. The former is relatively poorly crystalline hematite, which has a much stronger colouration capacity than the detrital form. In the Vispi Quarry section and Core 12X of ODP Hole 1049C, a good correlation between the absorption peak depth of hematite and redness value indicates that the red colouration is caused by hematite of similar crystallinity in each section.     

Petrology,geochemistry and geochronology of the Zhongcang ophiolite,northern Tibet: implications for the evolution of the Bangong-Nujiang Ocean

Ophiolites are widespread along the Bangong-Nujiang suture zone, northern Tibet. However, it is still debated on the formation ages and tectonic evolution process of these ophiolites. The Zhongcang ophiolite is a typical ophiolite in the western part of the Bangong-Nujiang suture zone. It is composed of serpentinized peridotite, cumulate and isotropic gabbros, massive and pillow basalts, basaltic volcanic breccia, and minor red chert. Zircon SHRIMP Ue Pb dating for the isotropic gabbro yielded weighted mean age of 163.4 ± 1.8 Ma. Positive zircon ε Hf(t) values(+15.0 to +20.2) and mantle-like σ~(18)O values(5.29 ±0.21)% indicate that the isotropic gabbros were derived from a long-term depleted mantle source. The isotropic gabbros have normal mid-ocean ridge basalt(N-MORB) like immobile element patterns with high Mg O, low TiO_2 and moderate rare earth element(REE) abundances, and negative Nb,Ti, Zr and Hf anomalies. Basalts show typical oceanic island basalt(OIB) geochemical features, and they are similar to those of OIB-type rocks of the Early Cretaceous Zhongcang oceanic plateau within the Bangong-Nujiang Ocean. Together with these data, we suggest that the Zhongcang ophiolite was probably formed by the subduction of the Bangong-Nujiang Ocean during the Middle Jurassic. The subduction of the Bangong-Nujiang Tethyan Ocean could begin in the Earlye Middle Jurassic and continue to the Early Cretaceous, and finally continental collision between the Lhasa and Qiangtang terranes at the west Bangong-Nujiang suture zone probably has taken place later than the Early Cretaceous(ca. 110 Ma).