Geochronological Significance of the Post-Orogenic Mafic- Ultramafic Rocks in the Hongqiling Area of Jilin Province, Northeast China

INTRODUCTIONThe mafic-ultramafic complexesinthe Hongqilingarea were emplacedintothe metamorphic rocksof the Hulan Group. Age determination of the intrusion and metamorphism of the Hulan Groupmetamorphic rocks is crucial for the study of petrogenesis and evolution, orogenesis and itsdevelopment of the region. However ,so far it has been difficult to determine the geochronology ofmafic-ultramafic rocks inthe area ,thusthe age obtainedfromprevious data hadto be used.Inrecentyears ,withthe …

Geochronological Significance of the Post-Orogenic Mafic-Ultramafic Rocks in the Hongqiling Area of Jilin Province, Northeast China

Mafic-ultramafic complexes are widespread in Hongqiling in central Jinlin Province, NE China. The Hongqiling complex comprises pyroxenite, olivine websterite, lherzolite, gabbro and leucogabbro. Based on the latest geochronological results, these intrusions yield a zircon U-Pb age of about 216 Ma, implying that they emplaced in the late Triassic period and that the mafic-ultramafic complexes are post-orogenic in origin. These ages are coeval with the emplacement of A-type granites in the area, but slightly younger than syn-orogenic granitic magmatism. The composition of the parent magma during the equilibration of the accumulated olivine crystallizing is basaltic with high MgO, and it comes from depleted or juvenile lithospheric mantle, according to the results of trace elements and Sr-Nd isotopes. Amount of crustal material contaminated the magmatic source, implying that the mafic-ultramafic rocks originate from the mixing product of crust- and mantle-derived magma. Therefore, the magmatic source was contaminated by an amount of crustal material, and the subsequent crystal fractionation resulted in the Cu-Ni mineralization. Dynamic analyses indicate that, after the collision of the North China Craton and Jiamusi Massif, the lithospheric delamination during post-orogeny resulted in the upwelling of asthenosphere and the intruding of the mass and underplating of the mantle-derived magma, which led to the formation of the primary mafic-ultramafic magma due to the mantle-derived magma and partial melting of the lower crust. This result suggests that the mafic-ultramafic complexes belong to a typically important magmatic suite that evolved during post-orogenic processes, and they were exposed as mafic-ultramafic dyke swarms that existed in the post-orogenic extension environment. It also implies that the orogenic process finished ultimately in this regional geological setting. The widespread occurrence of mafic-ultramafic complexes in the Xing'an-Mongolia Orogenic Belt in NE China and in the Altay-Tianshan-Junggar Orogenic Belt in Northern Xinjiang indicates that mafic intrusions are an important magmatic suite that evolved during post-orogenic processes. Portions of this mafic magma could have underplated the lower crust, and served as a heat source for associated late-stage granitic magmas.