Feldspar Lead Isotopic Composition of Granitoids from the Eastern Qinling Orogenic Belt and Their Tectonic Significance

This paper reports 48 feldspar lead isotope analyses from 27 granitic intrusions,which formed from the Late Proterozic to Mesozoic within the Eastern Qinling oregenic belt. Itis found that the granitic rocks of South Qinling are characterized by a strong block-effect anddepletion in U-Pb and Th-Pb, showing that these rocks came from the same lead isotopetectono-geochemical province, while those of North Qinling are characterized by higher U-Pband Th-Pb for Late Proterozoic to Early Paleozoic ones and lower U-Pb and Th-Pb forLate-Palaeozoic and younger ones in their feldspar lead isotopic composition. In the NorthQinling block, lead isotopic signatures reflect that the source of granitic magma had changedsince the Late Palaeozoic. Comparison of feldspar lead isotopic composition between SouthQinling and North Qinling shows that there is marked difference in lead isotopic compositionfor pre-Palaeozoic granitoids, indicating that the South Qinling and the North Qinling blocksbelong to different tectonic units, but the similarities in lead isotopic composition are quiteclear, which indicates that the South Qinling block had been welded with the North Qinlingblock and that the magma sources of both blocks were identical. The analysis provides directevidence for underplating of the continental crust of South Qinling beneath the North Qinlingblock in the continent-continent interaction stage of the Eastern Qinling oregenic belt.     

Ages of the Laocheng Granitoids and Crustal Growth in the South Qinling Tectonic Domain, Central China: Zircon U-Pb and Lu-Hf Isotopic Constraints

The Laocheng granitoid pluton is located in the South Qinling tectonic domain of the Qinling orogenic belt,southern Shaanxi Province,and consists chiefly of quartz diorite,granodiorite and monzogranite.A LA-ICP-MS zircon U-Pb isotopic dating,in conjunction with cathodoluminescence images,reveals that the quartz diorite and granodiorite were emplaced from 220 Ma to 216 Ma,while the monzogranite was emplaced at～210 Ma.In-situ zircon Hf isotopic analyses show that theε_(Hf)(t) values of the quartz diorite a...     

SHRIMP Zircon U-Pb Dating of Gabbro and Granite from the Huashan Ophiolite, Qinling Orogenic Belt, China： Neoproterozoic Suture on the Northern Margin of the Yangtze Craton

The recently identified Huashan ophiolitic melange was considered as the eastern part of the Mianliie suture in the Qinling orogenic belt. SHRIMP zircon U-Pb geochronology on gabbro from the Huashan ophiolite and granite intruding basic volcanic rocks indicates crystallization ages of 947±14 Ma and 876±17 Ma respectively. These ages do not support a recently proposed Hercynian Huashan Ocean, but rather favor that a Neoproterozoic suture assemblage (ophiolite) is incorporated into the younger (Phanerozoic) Qinling orogenic belt.     

Deformation Structures of the Madao Gneiss in South Qinling: Structural Analysis, Geochronological Constraints, and Tectonic Implications

The tectonic evolution of South Qinling,which is a main part of the Qinling orogenic belt,is still in dispute and deformation history of South Qinling is poorly studied.In this paper,detailed structural,microstructural,quartz c-axis fabric analysis,and geochronology results for the Madao gneiss in South Qinling are presented to characterize the deformation history.Results show that rocks in the northern part(Tiefodian-Laozhanggou) experience general shearing and deform at relative low temperature.The shear sense generally is south to north.In contrast,rocks in the southern part(Laozhanggou-Panjiahe) are weakly sheared with pure shear features and evidence of hightemperature deformation.Based on the analyses,we conclude that there exist two distinct deformation geometries in the Madao gneiss and accordingly we can divide the deformation into two stages.The early stage is represented by regional shortening,while the late stage features northward thrust shearing and evidence shows that it was a progressive process between them.LA-ICP MS U-Pb dating of zircons from pre-deformational migmatite veins yields age of 198.5 ± 2.0 Ma.This result,in combination with the age of post-deformational granite,indicates that the northward thrust shearing of the Madao gneiss occurred in the Late Triassic.In view of these results and other reported data in South Qinling,we propose that deformation in Madao gneiss may result from the initial collision and subsequent northward accretion in Late Triassic.     

Ages of the Laocheng Granitoids and Crustal Growth in the South Qinling Tectonic Domain, Central China: Zircon U-Pb and Lu-Hf Isotopic Constraints

The Laocheng granitoid pluton is located in the South Qinling tectonic domain of the Qinling orogenic belt, southern Shaanxi Province, and consists chiefly of quartz diorite, granodiorite and monzogranite. A LA-ICP-MS zircon U-Pb isotopic dating, in conjunction with cathodoluminescence images, reveals that the quartz diorite and granodiorite were emplaced from 220 Ma to 216 Ma, while the monzogranite was emplaced at ~210 Ma. In-situ zircon Hf isotopic analyses show that the εHf(t) values of the quartz diorite and granodiorite range from -8.1 to +1.3, and single-stage Hf model ages from 809 Ma to 1171 Ma, while the εHf(t) values of the monzogranite are -14.5 to +16.7 and single-stage Hf model ages from 189 Ma to 1424 Ma. These Hf isotopic features reveal that the quartz diorite, granodiorite and monzogranite were formed from the mixing of the magmas derived from partial melting of the depleted mantle and the lower continent crustal materials, and there were two stages of continental crust growth during the Neoproterozoic (~800 Ma) and Indosinian (~210 Ma) eras, respectively, in the south Qinling tectonic domain of the Qinling orogrnic belt, Central China.     

The Metamorphic and Deformational History of a Continental Collision Zone and its Geodynamic Process——as Evidenced by Qinling Complex,Western Henan,China

The Qinling orogenic belt is a collision zone between the North China andYangtze cratons.The Qinling Complex is a Precambrian metamorphic com-plex,developed in the inner zone of the orogenic belt,which records themetamorphic and deformational history and PTt path of the regional meta-morphism of the collision zone.The present paper studies the metamor-phic and deformational history and the PTt path of various tectono-metamorphic cycles in order to describe the geodynamic processes prevailing inthat part of the Qinling orogenic belt since Proterozoic.The tectonometamorphic history and evolution of the Qinling Complex isdivided into two stages:the stage of formation and the stage of modificationDuring the stage of formation dated as Proterozoic,three deformational se-quences are recognized.The amphibolite facies regional metamorphism is earlierthan or synchronous with the first or second phase of folding.Threemetamorphic zones,i.e.And-Ms,Sil-Ms,Sil-Kfs are delimited.During thestage of modification,the emp     

Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous Plutonism in the Northern Part of the Precambrian North China Craton： SHRIMP Zircon U-Pb Dating of Diorites and Granites from the Yunmengshan Geopark, Beijing

The Yunmengshan Geopark in northern Beijing is located within the Yanshan range.It contains the Yunmengshan batholith,which is dominated by two plutons:the Yunmengshan gneissic granite and the Shicheng gneissic diorite.Four samples of the Yunmengshan gneissic granite give SHRIMP zircon U-Pb ages from 145 to 141 Ma,whereas four samples of the Shicheng gneissic diorite have ages from 159 Ma to 151 Ma.Dikes that cut the Yunmengshan diorite record SHRIMP zircon UPb age of 162±2 and 156±4 Ma.The cumulative pl...     

Micro faunal assemblages in the Ordovician – Silurian successions from the Pin Valley of Tethys Himalaya, India

The Spiti basin together with the Zanskar basin forms the largest basin among the Tethyan Himalayan successions and forms one of the best-developed sec-tions in the Tethyan Tibetan belt. The basin is one of the classical areas, which depicts a continuous fos-siliferous Palaeozoic - Mesozoic successions. The present studies are focused on the Ordovician and Si-lurian successions of the Pin valley of the Spiti basin. Pin valley exposes richly fossiliferous lithological successions from Neoproterozoic to Cretaceous; therefore, it is an ideal section for the detail paleobi-ological and geological studies.     

Geochemistry, Zircon U–Pb Dating and Hf Isotopic Characteristics of Neoproterozoic Granitoids in the Yaganbuyang Area, Altyn Tagh, NW China

The South Altyn continental block is an important geological unit of the Altyn Tagh orogenic belt, in which numerous Neoproterozoic granitoids crop out. Granitoids are mainly located in the Paxialayidang–Yaganbuyang area and can provide indispensable information on the dynamics of Rodinia supercontinent aggregation during the Neoproterozoic. Therefore, the study of granitoids can help us understand the formation and evolutionary history of the Altyn Tagh orogenic belt. In this work, we investigated the Yaganbuyang granitic pluton through petrography, geochemistry, zircon U–Pb chronology, and Hf isotope approaches. We obtained the following conclusions:(1) Yaganbuyang granitoids mainly consist of two-mica granite and granodiorite. Geochemical data suggested that these granitoids are peraluminous calc–alkaline or high-K calc–alkaline granite types. Zircon U–Pb data yielded ages of 939±7.1 Ma for granodiorite and ~954 Ma for granitoids, respectively.(2) The εHf(t) values of two–mica granite and granodiorite are in the range of-3.93 to +5.30 and-8.64 to +5.19, respectively. The Hf model ages(TDM2) of two-mica granite and granodiorite range from 1.59–.05 Ga and 1.62–2.35 Ga, respectively, indicating that the parental magma of these materials is derived from ancient crust with a portion of juvenile crust.(3) Granitoids formed in a collisional orogen setting, which may be a response to Rodinia supercontinent convergence during the Neoproterozoic.     

Zircon U-Pb ages and Hf isotopic characteristics of the Dehe biotite monzonitic gneiss pluton in the North Qinling orogen and their geological significance

The Dehe granitic pluton intruded the Xiahe Group which is in the core complex of the North Qinling Orogenic Belt(NQOB).It shows gneissic bedding and possesses typical S-type granite minerals such as muscovite and garnet.LA-ICP-MS U-Pb isotopic dating of the Dehe granite yielded a weighted average age of 925±23 Ma which represents the emplacement age of the pluton.Most of the εHf(t) values are negative,and the two-stage model ages are consistent with the age of the Qinling Group.The isotope data show that the Dehe granite was formed in the following geological setting:in the syn-collision setting of the NQOB in the Neoproterozoic,crustal thickening induced partial melting of materials derived from the Qinling complex,and then the maga upwelled and intruded into the Xiahe Group.The formation of the Dehe S-type granite implied the occurrence of a convergent event in the QOB during the Neoproterozoic.     

Early Neoproterozoic Granite-Gneisses of the Junggar Alataw (Southeastern Kazakhstan): Age, Petrogenesis and Tectonic Implications

The combined petrographic, petrological, geochemical and geochronological study of the Neoproterozoic gneisses of the Sarychabyn and Baskan complexes of the Junggar Alataw of South Kazakhstan elucidate the Precambrian tectonic evolution of the Aktau–Yili terrane. It is one of the largest Precambrian crustal blocks in the western Central Asian orogenic belt. The U-Pb single-grain zircon ages indicate that granite-gneisses formed from the same source and crystallised in the early Neoproterozoic ca. 930–920 Ma. The chemical composition of gneisses corresponds to A2-type granites. The whole-rock Nd isotopic characteristics (εNd(t) = ?4.9 to ?1.0 and TNd(DM-2st) = 1.9 to 1.7 Ga) indicate the involvement of Paleoproterozoic crustal rocks in magma generation. Early Neoproterozoic ca. 930–920 Ma A-type granitoids in the Aktau–Yili terrane of South and Central Kazakhstan might reflect within-plate magmatism adjacent to the collisional belt or a local extension setting in back-arc areas of the continental arc.     

Detrital Zircon Ages of Hanjiang River： Constraints on Evolution of Northern Yangtze Craton, South China

Clastic sedimentary rocks are natural samples of the exposed continental crust over large areas. The Hanjiang (汉江) River drains the northern Yangtze craton,including the South Qinling (秦岭) belt and the northern parts of the Yangtze craton. Detrital zircons from this river thus provide an ideal sample for studying the formation and evolution of the northern Yangtze craton. Here we report laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer U-Pb ages of 122 detrital zircons from one sand sample of the Hanjiang River. The 110 concordant zircons reveal four major age groups of 768,444,212,and 124 Ma,which well correlate with known magmatic events in the northern Yangtze craton. A minor group is present at 1 536 Ma,which is less known in the study area. Only seven zircons have ages of >1 750 Ma. Our results show that the Early Paleozoic,Late Triassic,and Early Cretaceous are important episodes of zircon growth and crustal growth/reworking in addition to the previously documented Neoproterozoic event. Our results suggest very limited exposures of Paleoproterozoic and Archean rocks in the northern parts of the Yangtze craton.     

Zircon Geochronology and Trace Element Geochemistry from the Xiaozhen Copper Deposit, North Daba Mountain: Constraints on Albitites Petrogenesis

Albitite often accompanies with various metal and gem mineral deposits and a large number of occurrences have been reported globally, including the South Qinling orogen, China. The Xiaozhen copper deposit is a typical deposit in the North Daba Mountain area of the South Qinling orogen whose distribution is controlled by albitite veins and fractures. As there are few studies on the petrogenesis of albitite in Xiaozhen copper deposit, this paper focuses on the petrogenesis of albitite and its mineralization age. Detailed fieldwork and mineral microscopic observations initially suggest that albitite from the Xiaozhen copper deposit is igneous in origin. Further zircon trace element geochemistry studies indicate that these zircons have high Th/U ratios(0.5), low La content, high(Sm/La)N and Ce/Ce*values, and a strong negative Eu anomaly, which are commonly seen in magmatic zircons. The chondrite–normalized rare earth element(REE) patterns are consistent with magmatic zircons from throughout the world, and they fall within or near the field of magmatic zircons on discriminant diagrams. The calculated average apparent Ti–in–zircon temperature for young zircons is 780°C, consistent with magmatic zircon crystallization temperatures. Therefore, zircon geochemistry indicates that the albitite origin is magmatic. SIMS U–Pb dating on nine magmatic zircons yielded a concordia age of 154.8±2.2 Ma, which represents the formation of albitite and the metallogenic age. More importantly, it is consistent with the ages of Yanshanian magmatism and metallogenesis in the South Qinling orogen, so formation of the Xiaozhen copper deposit may be a closely related geological event.     

Association of Neoproterozoic A- and I-type Granites in South China: Implications for Generation of A-type Granites in A Subduction-related Environment

Neoproterozoic magmatism in the Yangtze Block of South China produced voluminous S- and I-type granites, and sparse A-type granites. The Daxiangling A-type granitic pluton is spatially associated with the Shimian I-type pluton at the western margin of the Yangtze Block. Both plutons have similar SHRIMP zircon U-Pb ages of～800 Ma and are slightly younger than the tonalite-trondhjemite-granodiorite (TTG) gneisses in the area.     

LA–ICP–MS U–Pb Geochronology of Detrital Zircon in the Guanzhong Basin, China and Its Tectonic Response

正Objective The Guanzhong Basin in the transitional zone of the Qinling orogenic belt and the southern margin of the Ordos Basin has been extensively studied in recent years.Although some results have been obtained,some problems such as whether the materials from the North China craton and the Qinling orogenic belt are detrital sedimentary rocks of the Guanzhong Basin still remain unresolved.     

Deformation of the Shirenshan Block in the North Qinling

<正>Objective The Qinling orogenic belt is a typical complex continental orogenic belt which has experienced multiperiod tectonic evolution and where some important tectonic belts formed.The Luoluan fault is one of the most important belts,which is the boundary fault of the North China Plate and the Qinling orogenic belt.The Shirenshan block is located in the north section between Luanchuan and Fangcheng of the Luoluan fault.The north part is     

Geochronology,Petrogenesis and Tectonic Setting of the Late Jurassic I-type Granites in the North Qinling Orogenic Belt,Central China

The North Qinling Orogenic Belt(NQOB) is a composite orogenic belt in central China. It started evolving during the Meso–Neoproterozoic period and underwent multiple stages of plate subduction and collision before entering intra-continental orogeny in the Late Triassic. The Meso–Cenozoic intra-continental orogeny and tectonic evolution had different responses in various terranes of the belt, with the tectonic evolution of the middle part of the belt being particularly controversial. The granites...     

Petrogenesis of Indosinian Granitoids in Middle-Segment of South Qinling Tectonic Belt: Constraints from Sr-Nd Isotopic Systematics

South Qinling Tectonic Belt (SQTB) is located between the Shangzhou-Danfeng and Mianxian-Lueyang sutures. There are a lot of early Mesozoic granitoid plutons in its middle segment, comprising the Dongjiangkou-Zhashui granitoid plutons at the northeast, Huayang-Wulong-Laocheng granitoid plutons at the central part, Xiba granitoid pluton at the northwest and Guangtoushan-Liuba granitoid plutons at the southwest. These Indonisian granitoids contain a mass of various scale mafic enclaves, which show sometimes clear boundaries and sometimes transitional boundaries with their host granitoids. These granitoids also exhibit metaluminous to peraluminous series, commonly higher Mg# and a wide range of petrochemistry from low-K tholeiite series, through mid-K and high-K calc-alkaline series to shoshonite series and predominated samples are attributed to mid-K and high-K calc-alkaline series. Detailed analyses in Sr-Nd isotopic systematics and petrochemistry reveal that there may be regionally initial granitoid magma of the Indonisian granitoid plutons, comprising Dongjiangkou-Zhashui, Huayang-Wulong-Laocheng, Xiba, and Guangtoushan-Liuba granitoid plutons, which were produced by hybrids of magmas in various degrees, and the initial magmas were derived from both the mantle and the lower continental crust (LCC) sources in the SQTB. The initial granitoid magma further did the magma hybrid with the magmas from the LCC, crystallization fractionation, and assimilation with upper crustal materials during their emplacement to produce these granitoid plutons in the SQTB. These magmatism processes are most likely to occur under continent marginal arc and syn-collision to post-collision tectonic backgrounds.     

Origin of the Newly Discovered Zhunuo Porphyry Cu-Mo-Au Deposit in the Western Part of the Gangdese Porphyry Copper Belt in the Southern Tibetan Plateau, SW China

The newly discovered Zhunuo porphyry Cu-Mo-Au deposit is located in the western part of the Gangdese porphyry copper belt in southern Tibet, SW China. The granitoid plutons in the Zhunuo region are composed of quartz diorite porphyry, diorite porphyry, granodiorite porphyry, biotite monzogranite and quartz porphyry. The quartz diorite porphyry yielded zircon U-Pb ages of 51.9±0.7 Ma(Eocene) using LA-ICP-MS, whereas the diorite porphyry, granodiorite porphyry, biotite monzogranite and quartz porphyry yielded ages ranging from 16.2±0.2 to 14.0±0.2 Ma(Miocene). CuMo-Au mineralization is mainly hosted in the Miocene granodiorite porphyry. Samples from all granitoid plutons have geochemical compositions consistent with high-K calc-alkaline series magmatism. The samples display highly fractionated light rare-earth element(REE) distributions and heavy REE distributions with weakly negative Eu anomalies on chondrite-normalized REE patterns. The trace element distributions exhibit positive anomalies for large-ion lithophile elements(Rb, K, U, Th and Pb) and negative anomalies for high-field-strength elements(Nb and Ti) relative to primitive mantlenormalized values. The Eocene quartz diorite porphyry yielded εNd(t) values ranging from-3.6 to-5.2,(~(87)Sr/~(86)Sr)i values in the range 0.7046–0.7063 and initial radiogenic Pb isotopic compositions with ranges of 18.599–18.657 ~(206)Pb/~(204)Pb, 15.642–15.673 ~(207)Pb/~(204)Pb and 38.956–39.199 ~(208)Pb/~(204)Pb. In contrast, the Miocene granitoid plutons yielded ε_(Nd)(t) values ranging from-6.1 to-7.3 and(87Sr/86Sr)i values in the range 0.7071–0.7078 with similar Pb isotopic compositions to the Eocene quart diorite. The Sr-Nd-Pb isotopic compositions of the rocks are consistent with formation from magma containing a component of remelted ancient crust. Zircon grains from the Eocene quartz diorite have ε_(Hf)(t) values ranging from-5.2 to +0.9 and two-stage Hf model ages ranging from 1.07 to 1.46 Ga, while zircon grains from the Miocene granitoid plutons have ε_(Hf)(t) values from-9.9 to +4.2 and two-stage Hf model ages ranging from 1.05–1.73 Ga, indicating that the ancient crustal component likely derives from Paleo- to Mesoproterozoic basement. This source is distinct from that of most porphyry Cu-Mo-Au deposits in the eastern part of the Gangdese porphyry copper belt, which likely originated from juvenile crust. We therefore consider melting of ancient crustal basement to have contributed significantly to the formation Miocene porphyry Cu-Mo-Au deposits in the western part of the Gangdese porphyry copper belt.     

Late Jurassic–Early Cretaceous Plutonism in the Northern Part of the Precambrian North China Craton: SHRIMP Zircon U–Pb Dating of Diorites and Granites from the Yunmengshan Geopark, Beijing

The Yunmengshan Geopark in northern Beijing is located within the Yanshan range. It contains the Yunmengshan batholith, which is dominated by two plutons: the Yunmengshan gneissic granite and the Shicheng gneissic diorite. Four samples of the Yunmengshan gneissic granite give SHRIMP zircon U–Pb ages from 145 to 141 Ma, whereas four samples of the Shicheng gneissic diorite have ages from 159 Ma to 151 Ma. Dikes that cut the Yunmengshan diorite record SHRIMP zircon U–Pb age of 162±2 and 156±4 Ma. The cumulative plots of zircons from the diorites show a peak age of 155 Ma, without inherited zircon cores, and the peak age of 142 Ma for granite is interpreted as the emplacement age of the Yunmengshan granitic pluton, whose igneous zircons contain inherited zircon cores. The data presented here show that there were two pulses of magmatism: early diorites, followed c13 Ma later by true granites, which incorporated material from an older continental crust.