SHRIMP Age and Geochemistry of the Bikou Volcanic Terrane:Implications for Neoproterozoic Tectonics on the Northern Margin of the Yangtze Craton

The Bikou volcanic terrane is predominated by subalkaline tholeiitic lavas. Rock samples display lower initial ratios of Sr and Nd, 0.701248-0.704413 and 0.511080-0.512341 respectively. 207Pb and 208Pb are significantly enriched in the lavas. Most samples have positive εNd, which indicates that the magma was derived from EM-type mantle source, while a few samples with negative εNd indicate that there was contamination in the magma evolution. Magma differentiation is demonstrated by variations of LREE and LILE from depletion to enrichment. Additionally, normalized REE patterns and trace elements showed that lavas from the Bikou volcanic terrane have similar characteristics to those of basalts in arc settings caused by subduction and collision. Analyses showed that the Bikou volcanic terrane is a volcanic arc. New evidence proved that the Hengdan Group, north of the Bikou arc, is a turbidite terrane filling a forearc basin. Consequently, the Bikou volcanic terrane and the Hengdan turbidite terrane construct an arc-basin system. New SHRIMP ages showed that this arc-basin system developed on the northern margin of the Yangtze craton in the Neoproterozoic (846-776 Ma), and this arc-basin system is in agreement with the tectonic processes of Rodinia in the Neoproterzoic.

U-Pb SHRIMP Dating of Zircon from Quartz Veins of the Yangshan Gold Deposit in Gansu Province and Its Geological Significance

The Yangshan gold deposit is a super-large fine-grained disseminated gold deposit located in southern Gansu Province. Its metallogenic age has been determined by using the cathodoluminescence image and ion probe U-Pb dating techniques. It is found that zircons from quartz veinlet of the fine-grained disseminated gold ore show characters of magmatic origin with prism idiomorphism, oscillatory zoning and dominant Th/U ratios of 0.5-1.5. Three main populations of zircons are obtained, giving average 206Pb/238U ages of 197.6±1.7 Ma, 126.9±3.2 Ma and 51.2±1.3 Ma respectively. The first age corresponds to the K-Ar age of the plagiogranite dike, while the latter two ages indicate that buried Cretaceous and Tertiary intrusives exist in the orefield, suggesting that the Yangshan gold deposit was genetically related to the three magmatic hydrothermal activities. By contrast, zircons from coarse gold-bearing quartz vein in the mining area are much older than the host rock, indicating that the vein was formed earlier and was not contaminated by later magmatic fluids. It is concluded that the coupling of multiperiodic hydrothermal activities in the mining area has contributed a lot to mineralization of the Yangshan gold deposit.

Mineralizing age of the Rushan lode gold deposit in the Jiaodong Peninsula:SHRIMP U-Pb dating on hydrothermal zircon

Zircons from the auriferous quartz vein in the Rushan gold deposit, Jiaodong Peninsula, have high common Pb contents (206Pbc = 2.00%—15.88%) and Th/U ratios (0.31—1.35), and trap primary CO2-H2O fluid inclusion similar to ore-forming fluids, indicating that they grew from high Th/U ratio ore-forming fluids responsible for gold min- eralization. SHRIMP U-Pb analyses of these zircons gave an age of 117±3 Ma comparable with the ages reported by the former researches in the other areas in the Jiaodong Penin- sula, which is interpreted as the age of gold mineralization at Rushan. The age of SHRIMP zircon U-Pb dating with 160±3 Ma from host rock Kunyushan monzogranite is different from that of the gold mineralization, indicating that there is no genetic relationship between gold mineralization and the granitic magmatism. SHRIMP U-Pb dating on hydrothermal zircons from auriferous quartz veins could be used to con- strain the timing of lode gold mineralization and the rela- tionship to relevant hydrothermal event.

Zircon SHRIMP U-Pb dating for the Cangshuipu volcanic rocks and its implications for the lower boundary age of the Nanhua strata in South China

The continental volcanic rocks and volcaniclastic sedimentary conglomerates of the Cangshuipu Formation occur well in Yiyang of Hunan Province, consisting of a wedge-shaped succession of Neoproterozoic strata that overlie with high-angle unconformity the flysch turbidites of the Lengjiaxi Group in the Upper Mesoproterozoic Eonothem. SHRIMP zircon U-Pb dating gives a weighted mean age of 814 ( 12 Ma for the dacitic volcanic agglomerates from the lowest part of the volcanic rocks in the Cangshuipu Formation. This age is younger than previously reported values of 921-933 Ma for the volcanic rocks from the Cangshuipu Formation. Our new dating represents the lower boundary age of the Neoproterozoic System in the studied area. The younger age for the Cangshuipu volcanic rocks is supported by the following observations: (1) Lower Neoproterozoic strata (814-1000 Ma) are missing in the studied area; (2) the Nanhua rift system was initiated at about 820 Ma; and (3) an age of ~820 Ma may be taken as the lower boundary timing of the Nanhua System (even Neoproterozoic) in South China.

Emplacement age and tectonic implications of the Xilinhot A-type granite in Inner Mongolia, China

A new rock type of granite, approximate 45 km2 in area and located about 10 km south of Xilinhot, Inner Mongolia, was found in the Sunitezuoqi (or called Su-zuoqi)-Xilinhot tectonic belt and identified as an A-type mia- rolitic intrusion. The pluton has miarolitic structure and is composed chiefly of perthite, quartz, euhedral albite and potassium feldspar. Various types of textures occur in the pluton, such as perthitie, graphic and myrmekite textures. Only quartz is found in miarolitic cavity. This A-type granite with seagull-shaped REE patterns and obvious negative Eu anomaly (d Eu = 0.24—0.28) is high in SiO2 (76%—77%), K and Na (Na2O + K2O = 7.75%—8.15%) and low in Ca (CaO = 0.20%—0.22%), Fe and Mg. Both petrographical observa-tions and chemical compositions indicate that it is an A-type granite. Zircon SHRIMP U-Pb analyses indicate that this A-type granite was emplaced at 276 2 Ma and coeval with the same type of granites in the adjacent areas. Therefore, it suggests that this pluton was likely formed in a post-orogenic extensional setting and probably related to break-off of sub-ducted slabs in Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB), which indicate that the Sunitezuoqi-Xilinhot belt was tectonically evolved into post-orogenic stage since early Permian.

Lower boundary age of the Nanhua System and the Gucheng glacial stage: Evidence from SHRIMPⅡ dating

In the newly revised Regional Chronostrati-graphic (Geochronologic) Scale of China, the original bipar-tite division of the Neoproterozoic is changed to tripartite division. The three 搒ystem?rank chronostratigraphic units are in ascending order of the Qingbaikou, Nanhua and Sin-ian Systems. This report presents SHRIMP zircon U-Pb dat-ing on volcanic tuffs from the candidate stratotype section of the Nanhua System at the Yangjiaping section that is geo-graphically located in Hupingshan Town, Shimen County, Hunan Province. Tuff from the upper part of the Xieshuihe Formation (equivalent to the Liantuo Formation) in the Lower Nanhua Series yields a zircon U-Pb age of 758 23 Ma, which may provide a constraint on the lower limit of the Gucheng glacial stage in the Nanhua System. Tuff from the Laoshanya Formation of its underlying Qingbaikou System (equivalent to the Banxi Group) gives a zircon U-Pb age of 809 16 Ma. The sampling locality lies 12 m from the upper boundary of the Qingbaikou System. According to the sedi-mentation rate it is estimated that the upper boundary age is about 800 Ma. The present studies also provide a resolution to the long-standing problems concerning stratigraphic cor-relation of the Late Precambrian in South China whether the Liantuo Formation is equivalent to the Banxi Group or not.

Zircon SHRIMP geochronology of the Xinkailing-Kele complex in the northwestern Lesser Xing'an Range, and its geological implications

Located in the eastern portion of the Xing'an-Mongolian Orogenic Belt (XMOB), the Xinkailing-Kele complex has previously been considered to be Precambrian metamorphic rocks, mainly according to its relatively high metamorphic grade. Our filed observation, however, revealed that the complex is composed mainly of metamorphic rocks (Kele complex), tectono-schists (“Xinkailing Group”),and granitoids (Xinkailing granitic complex). Dating on these rocks using advanced SHRIMP zircon U-Pb technique indicates that: (1) Biotite-plagioclase gneiss from the Kele complex has a protolith age of 337±7Ma (2σ) and a metamorphic age of 216±3Ma (2σ); (2) the tectono-schist of the “Xinkailing Group” gave a magmatic age of 292±6Ma (2σ), indicative of felsic volcanic protolith of the schist formed in Late Paleozoic time; and (3) the Menluhedingzi and Lengchuan granites of the Xinkailing granitic complex were emplaced at167±4 (20σ) and 164±4Ma (2σ), respectively. These results suggest that the Xinkailing-Kele complex is not Precambrian metamorphic rocks and the so-called Precambrian “Nenji-ang Block” does essentially not exist. In combination with regional geological data, we propose that the Kele metamorphic complex is likely related to a collisional tectonism that took place in Triassic lime, as indicted by its metamorphic age of 216±3Ma. The Xinkailing granitic complex was emplaced along the collisional zone during Mid-Jurassic time，likely in a post-orogenic or anorogenic setting.

SHRIMP U-Pb zircon geochronology and its implications on the Xilin Gol Complex,Inner Mongolia,China

The Xilin Gol Complex, consisting of deformed and metamorphosed rocks, was exposed as a large geological unit within the Central Asian Orogenic Belt, but its forming and subsequent deformed and metamorphic time has been an issue of little consensus. Petrographic analyses and SHRIMP dating on biotite-plagioclase gneiss, one of the ma-jor rocks within the Xilin Gol Complex, in southeast Xilinhot City, Inner Mongolia, China, where the Xilin Gol Complex was identified and named, yield its lower limit age of 437 3 Ma (2s ) by its magmatic zircon SHRIMP U-Pb dating, and an upper limit age of 316 3Ma (2s ), which was constrained by SHRIMP dating of magmatic zircons from adjacent un-deformed garnet-bearing granite which intruded the Com-plex. The Complex was thus determined to be formed and subsequently deformed/metamorphosed from the late Ordovi-cian-early Silurian to the mid-Carboniferous. Consequently, it is not the Precambrian terrane as previously considered by most geologists. More or less, the major rock——biotite- plagioclase gneiss within the Complex is more likely to be Paleozoic fore-arc turbidite formation before metamorphism and intensive deformation, in which the detrital zircons gave sporadic Precambrian ages as old as up to 3.1 Ga. The source of the turbidite formation is multiple, which may be derived either from the North China Craton, or from the South- Mongolia Micro-continent, or probably came from a poten-tial and undiscovered in situ terranes aged 600—800 Ma or even up to ca 3.1 Ga near the Complex.

Opening of the Tethys in southwest China and its significance to the breakup of East Gondwanaland in late Paleozoic:Evidence from SHRIMP U-Pb zircon analyses for the Garzêophiolite block

SHRIMP U-Pb zircon analyses for a gabbro sample from the Garzê ophiolite block yielded a mean 206Pb/238U age of 292±4 Ma, which indicated that the spread- ing time of the Garzê-Litang Tethys was most likely at the earliest Permian. Combined with previous studies, we sug- gest that the opening of the Tethys in southwest China was derived from breakup of the East Gondwanaland in the late Paleozoic.

Paleoproterozoic lower crust beneath Nushan in Anhui Province:Evidence from zircon SHRIMP U-Pb dating on granulite xenoliths in Cenozoic alkali basalt

Zircon SHRIMP U-Pb dating was carried out for an intermediate granulite xenolith in Cenozoic alkali basalt from Nushan. The results suggest that the lower crust beneath Nushan may have formed at about 2400—2200 Ma, and have been subjected to granulite-facies metamorphism at 1915±27 Ma. The old age of the Nushan lower crust is consistent with the geochemical similarities between Nushan granulite xenoliths and Archean-Paleoproterozoic granulite terrains in the North China craton, but it is not distinguishable from high-grade metamorphic rocks in the Yangtze craton where such old ages were also reported. Significant Pb-loss occurs in the Nushan zircons, implying important influence of widespread Mesozoic to Cenozoic underplating in East China on the lower crust beneath Nushan.