New Data on Diamond–Graphite Relationships in the Gneisses of the Kokchetav Massif (Northern Kazakhstan)

The results of studying an aggregate of graphite-and-diamond crystal in tourmaline 5 μm of the Kokchetav massif by the method of transmission electron microscopy are presented. The detail studies of the interface between the crystals of graphite and diamond have revealed the absence of disordered graphite that is detail partially graphitized diamond. Intense deformation changes in the graphite crystal occurred after it was captured by tourmaline at the regression stage, which led to considerable kinking of the graphite crystal along the a-axis. Thus, the coexistence of graphite and diamond crystals cannot be unambiguously interpreted as a product of partial diamond graphitization. Graphite could have crystallized syngenetic with a diamond crystal or at the retrograde stage in the graphite stability field.

     

The Late Silurian Age of the Reference Aralaul Granosyenites–Granite Massif (Northern Kazakhstan)

This work presents the results of U–Pb geochronological studies of alkaline granites of the Aralaul complex of Northern Kazakhstan, which allow one to substantiate their Late Silurian (420 ± 4 Ma) age. Taking into consideration the previously obtained data, we propose a new development scheme of Paleozoic granitoid magmatism in Northern Kazakhstan, which includes Late Ordovician granite–granodiorite (Zerenda and Krykkuduk), Early Silurian granite–leucogranite (Borovoe and Karabulak), Late Silurian granosyenites–granite (Aralaul), and Early Devonian (Balkashino and Orlinogorsk) complexes.     

Mesoproterozoic (Grenville-age) terranes in the Kyrgyz North Tianshan: Zircon ages and Nd–Hf isotopic constraints on the origin and evolution of basement blocks in the southern Central Asian Orogen

The North Tianshan orogenic belt in Kyrgyzstan consists predominantly of Neoproterozoic to early Paleozoic assemblages and tectonically interlayered older Precambrian crystalline complexes and formed during early Paleozoic accretionary and collisional events. One of the oldest continental fragments of late Mesoproterozoic (Grenvillian) age occurs within the southern part of the Kyrgyz North Tianshan. Using SHRIMP zircon ages, we document two magmatic events at ~ 1.1 and ~ 1.3 Ga. The younger event is characterized by voluminous granitoid magmatism between 1150 and 1050 Ma and is associated with deformation and metamorphism. The older event is documented by ~ 1.3 Ga felsic volcanism of uncertain tectonic significance and may reflect a rifting episode. Geochemical signatures as well as Nd and Hf isotopes of the Mesoproterozoic granitoids indicate melting of still older continental crust with model ages of ca 1.2 to 2.4 Ga.The Mesoproterozoic assemblages are intruded by Paleozoic diorites and granitoids, and Nd and Hf isotopic systematics suggest that the diorites are derived from melts that are mixtures of the above Mesoproterozoic basement and mantle-derived material; their source is thus distinct from that of the Mesoproterozoic rocks. Emplacement of these plutons into the Precambrian rocks occurred between 461 and 441 Ma. This is much younger than previously assumed and indicates that small plutons and large batholiths in North Tianshan were emplaced virtually synchronously in the late Ordovician to early Silurian.The Mesoproterozoic rocks in the North Tianshan may be remnants of a once larger continental domain, whose fragments are preserved in adjacent blocks of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt. Comparison with broadly coeval terranes in the Kokchetav area of northern Kazakhstan, the Chinese Central Tianshan and the Tarim craton point to some similarities and suggests that these may represent fragments of a single Mesoproterozoic continent characterized by a major orogenic event at ~ 1.1 Ga, known as the Tarimian orogeny.     

Origin and Geological Significance of TTG Gneisses from the Maevatanana Greenstone Belt in North–Central Madagascar, and A Comparison with India

The Maevatanana greenstone belt in north-central Madagascar contains widespread exposures of tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite(TTG) gneisses,and is important for its concentrations of various metal deposits(e.g.,chromium,nickle,iron,gold).In this paper we report on the petrography,and major and trace element compositions of the TTG gneisses within the Berere Complex of the Maevatanana area,as well as LA-ICP-MS U-Pb ages and Lu-Hf isotopic compositions of zircons from the gneisses.The gneisses consist mainly of granitoid gneiss and biotite(±hornblende) plagiogneiss,and analysis of thin sections provides evidence of crushing,recrystallization,and metasomatism related to dynamic metamorphism.Samples have large variations in their major and trace element contents,with SiO_2 = 55.87-68.06 wt%,Al_2O_3 = 13.9-17.8 wt%,and Na_2O/K_2O =0.97-2.13.Geochemically,the granitoid gneisses and biotite plagiogneisses fall on a low-Al trondhjemite to granodiorite trend,while the biotite-hornblende plagiogneisses represent a high-Al tonalite TTG assemblage.Zircon U-Pb dating shows that the Berere Complex TTG gneisses formed at2.5-2.4 Ga.Most ε_(Hf(t)) values of zircons from the biotite(± hornblende) plagiogneisses are positive,while most ε_(Hf(t)) values from the granitoid gneisses are negative,suggesting a degree of crustal contamination.Two-stage Hf model ages suggest that the age of the protolith of the TTG gneisses was ca.3.4-2.6 Ga,representing a period of paleocontinent formation in the Mesoarchean.Geothermometries indicate the temperature of metamorphism of the TTG gneisses was 522-612℃.Based on these data,the protolith of the TTG gneisses is inferred to have formed during the development of a Mesoarchean paleocontinent that is now widely exposed as a TTG gneiss belt(mostly lower amphibolite facies) in the Maevatanana area,and which records a geological evolution related to the subduction of an ancient oceanic crust and the collision of microcontinents during the formation of the Rodinia supercontinent.The lithological similarity of Precambrian basement,the close ages of metamorphism within greenstone belts and the comparable distribution of metamorphic grade all show a pronounced Precambrian geology similarity between Madagascar and India,which can provide significative clues in understanding the possible Precambrian Supercontinent tectonics,and also important constraints on the correlation of the two continental fragments.     

Late Cretaceous–Cenozoic uplift,deformation, and erosion of the SW Tianshan Mountains in Kyrgyzstan and Western China

The Mesozoic to Cenozoic mountain uplift, exhumation, and deformation of the SW Tianshan Mountains (Kyrgyzstan and Northwest China) offer an important window to understand the intra-continental rejuvenation mechanism of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB), as response to the far-field effects of the India-Asia collision. This article presents new observation and data for the planation surface and sedimentation and deformation features of the regional intermountain basins to rebuild the orogenic history in Mesozoic to Cenozoic. Three planation surfaces were recognized by field observation, showing that the mountain may have experienced lengthy erosion since the end Cretaceous, and a continuous planation surface may have formed at the Eocene to Oligocene. The filling sequences and deformation character revealed that the orogenic disintegrate and intermountain basin formation likely began in the end of Oligocene. Subsequently, the uniform planation surface in Western Tianshan may have begun to disintegrate, leading to the basin-and-range landform formation. Folds and nappes in the Cenozoic basins, large-scale thrusting of Palaeozoic rocks over Cenozoic sediments at the basin margin associated with the rapid mountain uplift may have occurred at the end of Early Pleistocene, suggesting a tectonic inversion. The Mesozoic–Cenozoic Tianshan uplift and deformation were likely induced by the collision/accretion along the southern margin of Eurasia. Both the northward propagation of the Parmir syntaxis to the SW Tianshan and the oblique dextral faulting of the Talas–Fergana fault have likely played an important role on the formation and deformation of the Cenozoic basins in the SW Tianshan.     

Early Paleozoic Protoliths of Gneisses and Granitic Gneisses in the Eastern South Urals: Results of U–Th–Pb (SIMS) Geochronological Studies

Doklady Earth Sciences - The Early Paleozoic age of the protolith for gneisses in the East Uralian megazone (South Urals) is proved by zircon dating. Two metamorphic complexes have been identified...     

Quartzite–Schist Sequences of the Aktau–Mointy Massif (Central Kazakhstan): Structural Position,Provenance, and Formation Stages of the Earth Crust in the Precambrian

Geotectonics - Detrital zircons from quartzite–schist sequences of the Aktau–Mointy Massif (Central Kazakhstan), which occur in various structural positions relative to the Early...     

Evidence for Early Mesoproterozoic (and Older?) Crust in the Southern and Central Appalachians of North America

Limited evidence from Sm-Nd T_DM model ages, U-Pb ages of xenocrystic zircon, and Pb isotopic data indicates the presence of Paleoproterozoic and Mesoproterozoic crust (2.0-1.3 Ga) in the southern and central Appalachian orogen. This apparently unexposed older crust must underlie much of the Blue Ridge, and it was recycled to produce most of the rocks of the Blue Ridge with ages ≤1.3 Ga. In the eastern Blue Ridge and in blocks to the southeast, there also is a significant juvenile Neoproterozoic source component. Going toward the southeast, the central and eastern Piedmont (Carolina terrane) appears to be underlain by progressively less source component older than 1.0 Ga. Late Proterozoic rocks of the Carolina terrane are derived largely from a juvenile source with a Nd isotopic composition that approaches that of depleted mantle.     

Geochemical Characteristics and Tectonic Setting of the Laohushan Basalts, North Qilian Mountains

The Ordovician Laohushan ophiolite, located in the eastern part of the North Qilian Mountains, is mainly composed of meta-peridotites, gabbros and basalts alternating with sediments. The sediments are mainly turbidites, including sandstones, siltstones, cherts etc. Major elements show that the basalts are subalkaline tholeiites and may be analogous to ocean-floor basalts. Except a few N-MORBs, most of the basalts are E-MORBs as indicated by incompatible element ratios such as (La/Ce)N, La/Sm, Ce/Zr, Zr/Y and Zr/Nb. Negative Nb anomaly is common but negative Zr, Hf and Ti anomalies are quite rare. Based on the geochemical characteristics, it is suggested that the Laohushan basalts were formed in a back-arc basin. εNd (t) of the basalts ranges between +3.0 and +8.9 and (87Sr/86Sr), ranges between 0.7030 and 0.7060, indicating a depleted mantle source which was mixed with more or less enriched mantle components. Furthermore, the petrography of the sandstones and geochemistry of the cherts suggest that the     

New Discovery of the Devonian Orthoclase Granite of Nenjiang–Heihe Structural belt, China and its Zircon U-Pb Data

正Objective The Nenjiang–Heihe structural belt is located in the eastern Xing’anling Mongolian Orogenic Belt between the Songnen block and Xiang’an block.This structural belt has long been the focus of geological scholars(Miao Laicheng et al.,2003;Liang Chenyue et al.,2011;Li Chao et al.,2017),which has complex geological condition,     

Paleozoic Accretion-Collision Events and Kinematics of Ductile Deformation in the Eastern Part of the Southern-Central Tianshan Belt, China

The Tianshan range could have been built by both late Early Paleozoic accretion and Late Paleozoic collision events. The late Early Paleozoic Aqqikkudug-Weiya suture is marked by Ordovician ophiolitic melange and a Silurian flysch sequence, high-pressure metamorphic relics, and mylonitized rocks. The Central Tianshan belt could principally be an Ordovician volcanic arc; whereas the South Tianshan belt, a back-arc basin. Macro- and microstructures, along with unconformities, provide some kinematic and chronological constraints on 2-phase ductile deformation. The earlier ductile deformation occurring at ca. 400 Ma was marked by north-verging ductile shearing, yielding granulite-bearing ophiolitic melange blocks and garnet-pyroxene-facies ductile deformation, and the later deformation, a dextral strike-slip tectonic process, occurred during the Late Carboniferous-Early Permian. Early Carboniferous molasses were deposited unconformably on pre-Carboniferous metamorphic and ductilely sheared rocks, implying t     

Structural–Hydrodynamic Organization and Functioning of the Ore-Forming System of the Irokinda Au Deposit (Northeast Transbaikalia)

Doklady Earth Sciences - New data on the structural–hydrodynamic organization of the ore-forming system (OFS) of the Irokinda deposit in the architecture of deep-seated faults are presented....     

Niobium Minerals As Indicators of a Genetic Link Between Tin-Bearing Zwitter and Lithium–Fluorine Granite of the Verkhneurmiysky Massif in the Amur River Region

Geology of Ore Deposits - Niobium minerals in zwitter and lithium–fluorine granite of the Verkhneurmiysky granitic massif in the Amur River region—fergusonite-(Y), euxenite-(Y),...     

Isotope–Geochemical Evidence for the Nature of Protolite Eclogite of the Kokchetav Massif (Kazakhstan)

Doklady Earth Sciences - In the present paper, the results of our isotope–geochemical studies on eclogites of the ultrahighpressure metamorphic complex of the Kokchetav massif are reported....     

Geochemistry, Monazite U–Pb Dating, and Li–Nd Isotopes of the Madi Rare Metal Granite in the Northeastern Part of the North China Craton

The Madi rare metal granite is a complex massif, which contains a variety of rare metals, such as Nb, Ta, Li, and Be. In this paper, the geochemical characteristics of the granite were obtained by multi-collector inductively coupled mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS). The precise crystalline age of the granite was obtained from monazite U-Pb dating, and the source of the granite was determined using Li-Nd isotopes. The Madi rare metal granite is a high-K (calc-alkaline), peraluminous, S-type granite. The U-Pb monazite age indicates that the crystalline age of the granite is 175.6 Ma, which is Early Jurassic. The granite is characterized by a relatively wide range of δ7Li values (+2.99‰ to +5.83‰) and high lithium concentrations (181 ppm to 1022 ppm). The lithium isotopic composition of the granite does not significantly correlate with the degree of magmatic differentiation. An insignificant amount of lithium isotope fractionation occurred during the granitic differentiation. The lithium isotopic composition of the granite significantly differs from that of the wall rock, but it is very similar to that of a primitive mantle peridotite xenolith (mean δ7Li value +3.5‰). The plot of Li concentration versus δ7Li indicates that the Li isotopic composition of the granite is similar to that of island arc lavas. Based on the above-described evidence, the granite was mainly derived from the crust, but it was contaminated by a deep granitic magma.     

Structural and Morphological Features of the Participation of Microorganisms in the Formation of Nb–REE–Rich Ores of the Tomtor Field (Russia)

Doklady Earth Sciences - Data indicating the important role of microorganisms in the redistribution of REEs in the weathering crust and the decisive role in the concentration of REEs during the...     

An Archaean Tonalite–Trondhjemite–Granodiorite Association of the Kursk Block (Voronezh Massif): Composition,Age, and Correlation with the Ukrainian Shield

Doklady Earth Sciences - Framing of the Archaean greenstone belts of the Kursk Block (KB) of the East Sarmatia preserves rocks of the TTG association: those do not form massifs with distinct...