Mesozoic-Cenozoic tectonic transition in Kuqa Depression-Tianshan, Northwest China: Evidence from sandstone detrital and geochemical records

Succeeding to multiply collisions of different blocks in Late Paleozoic[1―5], complex intracontinental structural deformation occurred in the Tianshan area during Mesozoic-Cenozoic[6―16], which controlled coeval basin-range evolution and resulted in intensive modi- fication and adjustment of the Paleozoic oil-gas reser- voirs[17―19]. The Kuqa Depression is a secendary struc- tural unit of the Tarim basin, in which Mesozoic- Ce- nozoic deposits occur in thickness of 6000―7000 m. The Kuq…

Mesozoic-Cenozoic tectonic transition in Kuqa Depression-Tianshan, Northwest China: Evidence from sandstone detrital and geochemical records

Similar to compositional evolution of sandstone modes and detrital heavy minerals from different profiles in the Kuqa Depression, Northwest China, major element analysis of whole sandstones from the same profiles shows four discontinuous depositional interfaces or periods, respectively corresponding to Lower TriassicMiddle Triassic, Upper JurassicLower Cretaceous, Lower CretaceousPaleogene and MiocenePliocene, and indicates five-phase evolution during Mesozoic-Cenozoic: (1) From the first to fifth phase, a depositional suite changes from maroon and coarse clastic, through grey-dark grey and fine, red and coarse, red-mottled, interlayered by gypsum, to brown and coarse clastic assemblages, accompanying detrital component evolution in unstable-stable-unstable-very unstable-very unstable assem- blages. It is indicated that carbonate and complex detritus gradually dominate in sandstones in post-Late Jurassic, with rapid reduction of compositional maturity. (2) For major element geo- chemical parameters of whole sandstones, CaO and Fe2 O * 3+MgO contents show a change sequence in high-low-high-higher-highest values, with rapid increasing in post-Late Jurassic. (3) Contra some aggregative indicators for weathering indexes of sandstone detrital component, Al2O3/(CaO+Na2O) and ln(Q/(L+CE)), show a change sequence in low-high-low-lower-lowest ratios, with rapid decreasing in post-Late Jurassic. It is found that sandstone samples of the first, second and later three phases may be distinguished from the A-CN-K and A-CNK-FM diagrams respectively. Therefore, in the Kuqa Depression-Tianshan, the most important discontinuous depositional interface recording paleotectonic and paleoclimatic transition occurred in Early TriassicMiddle Triassic and Late JurassicEarly Cretaceous, respectively, and, however, tec- tonic differentiations of basin-range system finally result in distinct depositional systems but similar detrital weathering indexes across the Lower CretaceousPaleogene and Miocene Plio- cene interfaces, respectively.