Investigation of plateau basin crustal structures and thickening mechanisms in the northeastern margin of the Tibetan plateau

This paper uses deep seismic sounding (DSS) data to contrast and analyze the crustal structures of three plateau basins (Songpan-Garze, Qaidam, Longzhong) in the northeastern margin of the Qinghai-Xizang (Tibetan) plateau, as well as two stable cratonic basins (Ordos, Sichuan) in its peripheral areas. Plateau basin crustal structures, lithological variations and crustal thickening mechanisms were investigated. The results show that, compared to the peripheral stable cratonic basins, the crystalline crusts of plateau basins in the northeastern margin are up to 10-15 km thicker, and the relative medium velocity difference is about 5% less. The medium velocity change in crustal layers of plateau basin indicates that the upper crust undergoes brittle deformation, whereas the lower crust deforms plastically with low velocity. The middle crust shows a brittle-to-plastic transition zone in this region. Thickening in the lower crust (about 5-10 km), and rheological characteristics that show low- medium velocity (relatively reduced by 7%), suggest that crustal thickening mainly takes place in lower crust in the northeastern margin of the Tibetan plateau. The crust along the northeastern margin shows evidence of wholesale block movement, and crustal shortening and thickening seem to be the main deformation features of this region. The GPS data show that the block motion modes and crustal thickening in the Tibetan plateau is closely related to the peripheral tectonic stress field and motion direction of the Indian plate. The Mani-Yushu- Xianshuihe fold belt along the boundary between the Qiangtang block and the Bayan Har block divides the different plateau thickening tectonic environments into the middle-western plateau, the northeastern margin and the southeastern plateau.

Multiple phases analysis of deep seismic sounding records in North China Craton

The North China Craton(NCC)is a key region to study the destruction of the ancient craton.Two groups of phases(denoted as"Pw1"and"Pw2"),which are parallel to the PmP phase reflected from the Moho discontinuity and the PLP phase reflected from the Lithosphere and Asthenosphere Boundary(LAB)respectively,are found on the record section of the Rongcheng-XinzhouAlxa long-range deep seismic sounding profile.The nature of the two phases is still unclear,although they are clearly observable and reverberant.In this paper,we use travel time inversion and amplitude forward modelling to fit the reflected and refracted phases in the lithosphere.The results show:(1)the Pw1 is a multiple reflected phase which is successively reflected by the crystalline basement,the surface,the Moho and then finally received on the surface;(2)the Pw2 phase is also a multiple reflected phase successively reflected by the crystalline basement,the surface,the LAB interface and then received on the surface.We conclude that the significant velocity difference between the thick sedimentary cover and the crystalline basement in the North China rifted basin may be the main reason for generating the multiple reflections.Furthermore,the two multiple reflections provide potent constraints on the lithospheric velocity model,and constitute seismological evidence for the lithospheric thinning in the eastern NCC.