Differential uplift between Beihuaiyang and Dabie orogenic belt

Isotope dating, hornblende geobarometer, fission-track analysis and fluid inclusion homogeneous temperature analysis have been applied to Caledonian, Variscan and Yenshan plutons in Bei Huaiyang (BHY) and Dabie orogenic belt (DOB), and the emplaced depths and ages of these plutons have been obtained in order to obtain differential uplift time and uplift heights between BHY and DOB since late Paleozoic era. BHY had experienced three stages of uplift (C1-C2, T-J2, J3-K1) and its total uplift height is about 10 km, but, DOB had only experienced two stages of uplift (T-J2, J3-K1) and its maximum uplift height is more than 15 km. BHY uplift occurred mainly before the mid-Jurassic (about 150 Ma), but DOB uplift took place after the mid-Jurassic (about 150 Ma).     

Two episodes of subduction and collision events at the northern foot of Dabie Mountains: Evidence from petrology and structural geology of granitoid rocks

The intrusive bodies studied include Mafan diorites ((462.7±1.5) Ma,⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar amphibole plateau age), Duhudian granites ((293±12) Ma, U-Ph zircon age) and Suxianshi granites ((146.2±0.9) Ma) in Beihuaiyang area at the northern foot of Dabie Mountains, central China. Petrological studies indicate that all of them belong to I-type granitoid rocks. Among them, the Mafan and Duhudian stocks were formed by arc magmatism, while the Suxianshi pluton is a post-collisional granitic body. Three intrusive bodies have distinctive characteristics of structural deformation. The Mafan stock has a rather complicated structure pattern resulting from polyphase deformation during the Caledonian and Mesozoic, the Duhudian stock has been pronouncedly deformed during the Hercynian-Yanshanian events, while regional foliation is not pronounced within the Yanshanian Suxianshi stock. Combination of regional stratigraphic, regional structural and geochronological data shows that the Yangtze plate has experienced two episodes of subduction northward beneath the North China plate during the Paleozoic and following collisional events. The first phase of collision at about 400 Ma resulted in the formation of the Beihuaiyang crystalline basement and the Caledonian high-pressure metamorphism in Dabie orogenic zone, and a late phase of continent-continent collision (~230 Ma) is responsible for the Triassic ultrahigh- and high-pressure metamorphism in Dabie Mountains and for orogenic uplift of the Dabie Mountains. It is suggested that the Beihuaiyang tectonic belt at the northern foot of the Dabie Mountains is a multicyclic suture.     

Crustal structure of the eastern Dabie orogenic belt from the seismic tomography and wide-angle reflection studies

IntroductionDuringtheMarchof1997,anactive-sourceseismicexperimentwasundertakenbyajointSino-GermanseismicprojecttoinvestigatethesubsurfacestructurebeneaththeDabieUHPMbeltwithintheframeworkofinternationalContinentalScientificDrillingProgramme(ICDP).ThetargetareaislocatedbetweenYuexiandQianshaninAnhuiProvince,andgeologicallyonthejunctureoftheDabieorogenicbeltandtheTanlufault(Figurel).Thisexperimentisparticularlydesignedsinthefieldcombinedwiththeinterestsofseismictomographyandwide-anglere…     

大别造山带与郯庐断裂带壳、幔结构和陆内“俯冲”的耦合效应

地质学家基于岩石年代学、峰期变质的压力差和阿尔卑斯变质沉积岩中柯石英的发现，推断在大别造山带地区发现的柯石英和榴辉岩乃是地幔深处120km左右折返至地壳浅部的结果.为了提供大别造山带与郯庐断裂带地域的壳、幔深部结构与深层动力过程的定量判据，本文利用瑞利（Rayleigh）波的频散效应反演该区S波的三维群速度结构分布.研究结果表明：（1）该区存在一由东向西陆内俯冲的高速板舌，其下插深度仅达160 km.在秦岭—大别造山带地域上地幔70km深处存在一顶部宽约500km的低速地幔热点.（2）出露的含柯石英榴辉岩是大别造山带深部物质和能量的交换，郯庐断裂带强烈平移错动及板内俯冲效应共同作用导致的深部物质(上地幔)运移和动力学效应的综合产物.     

大别山超高压变质带深部电性结构及其动力学意义初步研究

通过在大别造山带东部横穿超高压变质带的一条NNE向剖面大地电磁测深资料的分析解释,获得了关于沿剖面的地壳上地幔二维电性结构,显示北淮阳与大别地块是电性差异显著的构造单元,它们之间的界面与晓天—磨子潭断裂对应;晓天—磨子潭断裂倾向北,在中上地壳层位出现错动解耦现象;从地表向深处可划分出4个主要电性层：地表风化层、中上地壳高阻层、壳内相对高导层以及上地幔层;大别地块内中、上地壳层位以高阻层为主,与高压-超高压变质岩分布区对应,高阻层最厚处在岳西—英山之间;在大别地块内,推测存在燕山期花岗质岩浆活动的通道,它们造成了超高压变质岩的进一步抬升,同时影响了大别地块内存在的壳内相对高导层的分布,壳内相对高导层在层位上相差较大.     

Studies on40Ar/39Ar thermochronology of strike-slip time of the Tan-Lu fault zone and their tectonic implications

Samples of mylonite, ultramylonite and phyllonite were collected from 5 localities in the Anhui part of the Tan-Lu fault zone for⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar chronological studies. Among them 4 samples from 3 localities on the eastern margin of the Dabie orogenic belt yielded⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar plateau ages of 128 —132 Ma; and 2 samples from the western margin of the Zhangbalin uplift and eastern margin of the Bengbu uplift gave the same⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar plateau ages of 120 Ma. Isochron analyses and other lines of evidence suggest that the data are reliable. The data are interpreted as cooling ages of sinistral strike-slip deformation of the Tan-Lu fault zone. The younger ages from the north might be related to slower strike-slip rising. These results indicate that the large-scale left-lateral displacement in the Tan-Lu fault zone took place in the Early Cretaceous, rather than in Late Triassic (Indosinian) as proposed by some geologists. Therefore, this fault zone is an intracontinental wrench fault rather than a transform fault or suture line developed during formation of the Dabie orogenic belt.     

Deformation features of garnet-bearing granites from Huwan,western Dabie Mountains

Foliated garnet-bearing granite, usually associated with high pressure and ultrahigh -pressure (UHP) metamophic rocks, is a particular rock-type extensively exposed in the Mesozoic Dabie-Sulu orogenic belt of China. This study focuses on deformation features and SHRIMP zircon dating of foliated garnet granite in a high-pressure metamorphic unit from Huwan, western Dabie Mountains in order to resolve discrepancies in current versions of its petrogenesis and structural evolution. SHRIMP dating reveals a zircon age of 762 ± 15 Ma (MSWD=1.7) for Huwan granites, representing the Middle to Late Neoproterozoic age of intrusion and crystallization. Field and microstructural studies show that the Huwan granite body underwent multiple-stage deformation. The deformation was manifested by an early stage of rootless folding and imposition of relict foliation (S₁); an Indosinian main stage marked by imposition of north-dipping penetrative gneissosity (S₂) and development of ductile shear zones under NNE-SSW directed compression; and a final Indosinian stage of southward thrusting of the Huwan high-pressure unit. Shallow level extension prevailed after the Late Triassic, giving rise to south-dipping thrust faults and north-dipping normal faults. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 40802046 and 40334037) and the Project of Science & Technology Research and Development from Sinopec (Grant No. P02009)     

Mesozoic basin-fill records in south foot of the Dabie Mountains: Implication for Dabie Orogenic attributes

For the Triassic continental collision, subduction and orogenesis in the Dabie-Sulu belt, a lot of data on petrology, geochemistry and chronology have been published[1]. However, so far no depositional records on the Triassic syn-collisional orogenesis of…     

Crustal structure beneath the Dabie orogenic belt from ambient noise tomography

The Qinling–Dabie–Sulu orogenic belt in east-central China is the largest high and ultrahigh pressure (HP and UHP) metamorphic zone in the world. The Dabie Mountains are the central segment of this orogenic belt between the North China and Yangtze cratons. This work studies the nature of the crustal structure beneath the Dabie orogenic belt to better understand the orogeny. To do that, we apply ambient noise tomography to the Dabie orogenic belt using ambient noise data from 40 stations of the China National Seismic Network (CNSN) between January 2008 and December 2009. We retrieve high signal noise ratio (SNR) Rayleigh waves by cross-correlating ambient noise data between most of the station pairs and then extract phase velocity dispersion measurements from those cross-correlations using a spectral method. Taking those dispersion measurements, we obtain high-resolution phase velocity maps at 8–35 second periods. By inverting Rayleigh wave phase velocity maps, we construct a high-resolution 3D shear velocity model of the crust in the Dabie orogenic belt.The resulting 3D model reveals interesting crustal features related to the orogeny. High shear wave velocities are imaged beneath the HP/UHP metaphoric zones at depths shallower than 9 km, suggesting that HP/UHP metaphoric rocks are primarily concentrated in the upper crust. Underlying the high velocity HP/UHP metamorphic zones, low shear velocities are observed in the middle crust, probably representing ductile shear zones and/or brittle fracture zones developed during the exhumation of the HP/UHP metamorphic rocks. Strong high velocities are present beneath the Northern Dabie complex unit in the middle crust, possibly related to cooling and crystallization of intrusive igneous rocks in the middle crust resulting from the post-collisional lithosphere delamination and subsequent magmatism. A north-dipping Moho is revealed in the eastern Dabie with the deepest Moho appearing beneath the Northern Dabie complex unit, consistent with the model of Triassic northward subduction of the Yangtze Craton beneath the North China Craton.     

Deep structures of the east Dabie ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic belt,East China

The Dabie Mountain is one of the best places for geologists to study the ultrahigh-pressure metamorphism (UHPM) because coesite-bearing eclogites and other UHPM rocks are well ex-posed on the surface. The Dabie UHPM belt has been studied by many geoscientists with re-markable results[1—9]. Recent researches show that the host rocks of the coesite-bearing eclogites, such as gneiss and marble, also contain coesites[10—14], thus undergoing ultrahigh-pressure meta-morphism. The idea of con…     

U–Pb zircon ages and Sr-Nd-Pb isotopic compositions for Permian–Jurassic plutons in the Ogcheon belt and Ryeongnam massif, Korea: Tectonic implications and correlation with the China Qinling–Dabie belt and the Japan Hida belt

Abstract The Ogcheon fold belt and the Ryeongnam massif in the Korean Peninsula are made up of Precambrian igneous and sedimentary rocks that have been metamorphosed, tectonically deformed and extensively intruded by mafic to felsic plutonic rocks of Permian to Jurassic age. In the present study, we report seven new U–Pb zircon ages and Sr‐Nd‐Pb isotopic data for Permian to Jurassic plutons in the Ogcheon belt and the Ryeongnam massif. In the Ogcheon belt, these are: the Cheongsan porphyritic granite (217 ± 3.1 My), the Baegrog foliated granodiorite (206.4 ± 3.6 My), the Sani granite (178.8 ± 2.9 My) and the Yeonggwang foliated granite (173.0 ± 1.7 My). For the Ryeongnam massif, we report on the Yeongdeog foliated granodiorite (252.2 ± 2.9 My), the Sancheong gabbro (203.8 ± 3.3 My) and the Baegseogri foliated granodiorite (177.8 ± 2.4 My). All of these ages are lower concordia intercepts; the upper concordia intercepts indicate derivation from a Precambrian protolith. Sr, Nd and Pb isotopes also reveal that much of the Permian–Jurassic (252–173 Ma) plutonism in Korea was generated by recycling of Precambrian rocks. These new ages, together with other published zircon ages indicate that the plutonism in the Ogcheon fold belt is coeval with that in the Ryeongnam massif, but based on the Sr‐Nd‐Pb isotopic evidence, they are not cogenetic. In addition, zircon ages provide information on the movement along the Honam shear zone, which cuts across the whole Korean Peninsula and along most of its length provides the boundary between the Ogcheon fold belt and the Ryeongnam massif. It has a prolonged history of movement and deformation and appears to have been active from the Precambrian through to the Mesozoic, from before 1924 Ma to at least 180 Ma. The Permian–Jurassic igneous and tectonic activity in Korea is a manifestation of the more extensive orogenic activities that affected the East Asian continent at that time. In China, ultra high‐pressure rocks of the Qinling–Dabie belt formed between 210 and 230 Ma as result of the collision between the South China block and the North China block. In central Japan, corresponding plutonic activity is dated as 175 to 231 Ma. The absence of ultra high‐pressure rocks in Korea and Japan precludes a simple extension of the Qinling–Dabie belt eastwards; however, the effects of the continental collision eastwards are apparent from the igneous and tectonic activity.     

Age of Yingfeng rapakivi granite pluton on the north flank of Qaidam and its geological significance

Rapakivi granite is a very rare and special type of rocks in the crust. Nearly all the typical Proterozoic rapakivi occurred in stable craton, and was regarded as representing special anorogenic settings and rifting events of the supercontinents. Therefore, rapakivi has constantly been attracting the attention of researchers from various countries[15]. For example, the Protero- zoic rapakivi granites occurring in Miyun, Beijing, has been studied in detail by the researchers both at home and …     

Phase equilibria and metamorphic evolution of garnet‐mica‐plagioclase gneisses from the Qiliping terrane in the western Dabie Orogen,central China

The extensive gneisses in the high‐pressure and ultrahigh‐pressure metamorphic terrane in the Dabie‐Sulu orogen usually show no evidence of eclogite‐facies metamorphism. The garnet‐mica‐plagioclase gneisses from the Qiliping region in the western Dabie Orogen, comprise garnet, phengite, biotite, plagioclase, quartz, rutile, ilmenite, chlorite, epidote, and hornblende. The garnet porphyroblasts, with inclusions of quartz, epidote, and rutile, exhibit slight compositional zonations, from core to mantle with an increase in pyrope and a decrease in spessartine, and from mantle to rim with a decrease in pyrope and grossular and an increase in spessartine. The high‐Si phengite indicates that the gneisses may be subjected to a high‐pressure metamorphism. By the P–T pseudosections calculated in a system NCKMnFMASHTO (Na₂O‐CaO‐K₂O‐MnO‐FeO‐MgO‐Al₂O₃‐SiO₂‐H₂O‐TiO₂‐O) for two representative samples, the metamorphic P–T path, reconstructed by the compositionally zoned garnet, shows that the prograde metamorphism is characterized by a temperature increase with a slight pressure increase from the conditions of 17.6 ± 1.5 kbar at 496 ± 15°C to the peak‐pressure ones of 21.8 ± 1.5–22.7 ± 1.5 kbar at 555 ± 15–561 ± 15°C; the early retrograde stage is dominated by decompression with a temperature increase to the maximum of 608 ± 15–611 ± 18°C at 10.3 ± 1.5–11.0 ± 1.5 kbar; and the late retrograde one is predominated by pressure and temperature decreases. The mineral assemblages in the prograde metamorphism are predicted to contain garnet, glaucophane, jadeite, lawsonite, phengite, quartz, rutile, and/or chlorite, which is different from those observed at present. Such high‐pressure metamorphism can partly be reconstructed by the P–T pseudosection in combination with the high‐Si phengite and garnet compositions in the core and mantle. This provides an important constraint on the subduction and exhumation of the terrane during the continent–continent collision between the Yangtze and Sino‐Korean cratons.     

Kyanite-anthophyllite schist and southwest extension of the Dabie Mountains ultrahigh- to high-pressure belt

Abstract Kyanite-anthophyllite schist preserves the first record of high pressure in the amphibolite-facies unit of the SW Dabie Mountains, whereas ultrahigh- and high-pressure (UHP and HP) metamorphism has been well documented by the occurrence of coesite, diamond and mafic eclogite in the SE Dabie Mountains. Textural evidence indicates that minerals of the kyanite-anthophyllite schist formed mainly in two stages: (i) garnet + kyanite + antho-phyllite + rutile formed at pressure in excess of 1.2 GPa at T < 650°C; (ii) cordierite±staurolite formed by reaction of anthophyllite + kyanite at P < 0.5 GPa, T∼530°C. Plagioclase and ilmenite replaced garnet and rutile respectively during decompression. In a still later stage, secondary biotite recrystallized, accompanied by sillimanite replacing kyanite, and spinel replacing staurolite. The P-T information suggests that the amphibolite unit in the SW Dabie Mountains is part of the Triassic collision belt between the Sino-Korean and Yangtze cratons. The P-T paths of the UHP eclogite in the eastern Dabie Mountains and the HP kyanite-anthophyllite schist in the SW Dabie Mountains show similar decompression and equivalent late stage Barrovian-style metamorphism. Emplacement of voluminous granitoid at middle crustal levels between 134–118 Ma contributed to the development of the Barrovian-type metamorphism in the Dabie Mountains.     

Early Yanshanian post-orogenic granitoids in the Nanling region Petrological constraints and geodynamic settings

Early Yanshanian magmatic suites predominate absolutely in the Nanling granite belt. They consist mainly of monzogranite and K-feldspar granite. There occur associations of early Yanshanian A-type granitoids (176 Ma-178 Ma) and bimodal volcanic rocks (158 Ma-179 Ma) in southern Jiangxi and southwestern Fujian in the eastern sector of the granite belt and early Yanshanian basalts (177 Ma-178 Ma) in southern Hunan in the central sector of the belt. Both the acid end-member rhyolite in the bimodal volcanic rock association and A-type granitoids in southern Jiangxi have the geochemical characteristics of intraplate granitic rocks and the basic end-member basalt of the association is intraplate tholeiite, while the basaltic rocks in southern Hunan include not only intraplate tholeiite but also intraplate alkali basalt. Therefore the early Yanshanian magmatic suites in the Nanling region are undoubtedly typical post-orogenic rock associations. Post-orogenic suites mark the end of a post-collision or late orogenic event and the initiation of Pangaea break-up, indicating that a new orogenic Wilson cycle is about to start. Therefore it may be considered that the early Yanshanian geodynamic settings in the Nanling region should be related to post-orogenic continental break-up after the Indosinian orogeny and the break-up did not begin in the Cretaceous.     

Early Yanshanian post-orogenic granitoids in the Nanling region-- Petrological constraints and geodynamic settings

Early Yanshanian magmatic suites predominate absolutely in the Nanling granite belt.They consist mainly of monzogranite and K-feldspar granite.There occur associations of early Yanshanian A-type granitoids(176 Ma-178 Ma) and bimodal volcanic rocks(158 Ma-179 Ma) in southern Jiangxi and southwestern Fujian in the eastern sector of the granite belt and early Yanshanian basalts(177 Ma-178 Ma) in southern Hunan in the central sector of the belt.Both the acid end-member rhyolite in the bimodal volcanic rock association and A-type granitoids in southern Jiangxi have the geochemical characteristics of intraplate granitic rocks and the basic end-member basalt of the association is intraplate tholeiite,while the basaltic rocks in southern Hunan include not only intraplate tholeiite but also intraplate alkali basalt.Therefore the early Yanshanian magmatic suites in the Nanling region are undoubtedly typical post-orogenic rock associations.Post-orogenic suites mark the end of a post-collision or late orogenic event and the initiation of Pangaea break-up,indicating that a new orogenic Wilson cycle is about to start.Therefore it may be considered that the early Yanshanian geodynamic settings in the Nanling region should be related to post-orogenic continental break-up after the Indosinian orogeny and the break-up did not begin in the Cretaceous.     

Compositional study of minerals within the Qinlingliang granite, Southwestern Shaanxi Province and discussions on the related problems

The Qinlingliang granite massif, Southwestern Shaanxi Province, China was reported as a rapakivi intrusion. However, its mineralogical and petrological study and detailed comparison with the Shachang rapakivi bodies in Miyun County, Beijing show that it obviously contrasts with typical rapakivi in petrographical characteristics, mineralogical assemblages, compositions of feldspar and mafic minerals, and species and contents of accessory minerals. Hence it is argued to be one of the quartz monzonite intrusions common in continental orogenic belts instead of rapakivi. Comprehensive discussions make several problems more clear, namely the Qinlingliang massif formed in a compressional tectonic background instead of an extensional setting; it intruded at the beginning of the full-scale collision between the Yangtze and North China plates other than the post-orogenic stage; the Qinling belt was an Indosinian-Yanshannian continental collision orogen.     

Geometry,kinematics and evolution of the Tongbai orogenic belt

1 Introduction spectively[2,3]. Several tectonic units such as the Bei- The Qinling-Dabie orogenic belt has attracted huaiyang, north Dabie, south Dabie and Susong belts worldwide attention by its very complex and abundant have been recognized in eastern Dabie[4]. Nine tec- geological characters, and has been a “hot point” of tonic units have been recognized in western Dabie and international geological research[1]. A vast amount of a more detailed division has been suggested especially …     

U-Pb isotopic compositions of the ultrahigh pressure metamorphic (UHPM) rocks from Shuanghe and gneisses from Northern Dabie zone in the Dabie Mountains,central China: Constraint on the exhumation mechanism of UHPM rocks

The occurrence of ultrahigh pressure (UHP) minerals, such as coesite and diamond in crustal rocks in orogenic belts suggests that a huge amount of continental crust can be subducted to man-tle depth during the continental-continental collision[1—6]. This…     

A new occurrence of retrogressed eclogite from the Sanbagawa belt of southwest Japan and its significance

The present paper reports, for the first time, the occurrence of an omphacite‐bearing mafic schist from the Asemi‐gawa region of the Sanbagawa belt (southwest Japan). The mafic schist occurs as thin layers within pelitic schist of the albite–biotite zone. Omphacite in the mafic schist only occurs as inclusions in garnet, and albite is the major Na phase in the matrix, suggesting that the mafic schist represents highly retrogressed eclogite. Garnet grains in the sample show prograde‐type compositional zoning with no textural or compositional break, and contain mineral inclusions of omphacite, quartz, glaucophane, barroisite/hornblende, epidote and titanite. In addition to the petrographic observations, Raman spectroscopy and focused ion beam system–transmission electron microscope analyses were used for identification of omphacite in the sample. The omphacite in the sample shows a strong Raman peak at 678 cm^?1, and concomitant Raman peaks are all consistent with those of the reference omphacite Raman spectrum. The selected area electron diffraction pattern of the omphacite is compatible with the common P2/n omphacite structure. Quartz inclusions in the mafic schist preserve high residual pressure values of Δω₁ > 8.5 cm^?1, corresponding to the eclogite facies conditions. The combination of Raman geothermobarometries and garnet–clinopyroxene geothermometry gives peak pressure–temperature (P–T) conditions of 1.7–2.0 GPa and 440–540 °C for the mafic schist. The peak P–T values are comparable to those of the schistose eclogitic rocks in other Sanbagawa eclogite units of Shikoku. These findings along with previous age constraints suggest that most of the Sanbagawa schistose eclogites and associated metasedimentary rocks share similar simple P–T histories along the Late Cretaceous subduction zone.