Occurrences of Excess ^(40)Ar in Hydrothermal Tourmaline: Interpretations from ^(40)Ar-^(39)Ar Dating Results by Stepwise Heating

The occurrences of excess ^40Ar within a hydrothermal tourmaline is discussed in term of the analysis data of syngenetic muscovite and tourmaline from the Lushui hydrothermal tin-tungsten deposit in western Yunnan, China, using the ^40Ar-^39Ar stepwise heating technique. About 80% excess ^40 Ar was released in the last step when the tourmaline was fused, corresponding to a release of only -3% ^39 Ar （K）, which indicates that most excess ^40 Ar was held in the mineral lattice rather than in the channels parallel to the Z-axis. This suggests that the excess ^40 Ar was incorporated during crystallization and not diffused into the tourmaline during the post-crystallization history.

Muscovite 40Ar-39Ar age and its geological significance in Zhuxi W（Cu） deposit, northeastern Jiangxi

The Zhuxi W(Cu)skarn deposit,the world’s largest tungsten deposit is newly discovered in Jingdezhen city,northeastern Jiangxi province,China.It mainly occurs near the contact zone between the Yanshanian granites and the Late Paleozoic carbonate rocks.Three types of mineralization including skarn type,altered granite type and quartz vein veinlet type orebodies have been observed.In this study,the 40Ar 39Ar age of hydrothermal muscovite coexisting with copper mineralization in the altered granite type orebody formed near the unconformity interface is determined by step-heating technology using CO2 laser.The plateau age,isochron age,and inverse isochron age of muscovite are(147.39±0.94)Ma,(147.2±1.5)Ma,and(147.1±1.5)Ma,respectively.These ages are almost identical to the ages of ore-related granite and other mineralization types in the Zhuxi W(Cu)deposit,indicating that the Cu mineralizations occurred at the shallow depth and near the unconformity interface are contemporaneous during the Late Jurassic.This further suggested that the acompanied W and Cu mineralization in the Zhuxi W(Cu)deposit which may be controlled by the magma source is enriched in both W and Cu.

^(40)Ar-^(39)Ar Age of K-feldspar from K-feldspar Granite in the Qiaohuote Copper Deposit, Bayanbulak, Xinjiang, and Its Geological Significance

By using the 40Ar-39Ar chronological method to date K-feldspar from K-feldspar granite in the Qiaohuote copper district, the authors obtained a plateau age of 274.78±0.44 Ma and an isochron age of 272.7±3.0 Ma. Because there is no tectonic deformation overprinted or hydrothermal alteration in the K-feldspar granite intrusion after its emplacement, the 40Ar-39Ar age represents the crystallization age of K-feldspar in K-feldspar granite, i.e. the late crystallization age of the K-feldspar granite intrusion, which indicates that the K-feldspar granite formed in the intraplate extensional stage during the Early Permian. Moreover, based on the spatial relationship between the K-feldspar granite intrusion and copper orebodies, variations of copper ore grade, REE characteristics of K-feldspar granite and copper ores, and H and O isotopic compositions of fluid inclusions in copper ores, the metallogenesis of the Qiaohuote copper deposit is directly related to intrusive activities of the K-feldspar granite, and thus the crystallization age of K-feldspar in the granite approximately approaches the metallogenic epoch of the Qiaohuote copper deposit.

Feeder and post Deccan Trap dyke activities in the northern slope of the Satpura Mountain： Evidence from new 40Ar-39Ar ages

We present new 40Ar-39Ar plagioclase crystallization ages from the dykes exposed at the northern slope of the Satpura Mountain range near Betul-Jabalpur-Pachmarhi area, - 800 km NE of the Western Ghats escarpment. Among the two plateau ages, the first age of 66.56 ± 0.42 Ma from a dyke near Mohpani village represents its crystallization age which is either slightly older or contemporaneous with the nearby Mandla lava flows （63-65 Ma）. We suggest that the Mohpani dyke might be one of the feeders for the surrounding lava flows as these lavas are significantly younger than the majority of the main Deccan lavas of the Western Ghats （66.38-65.54 Ma）. The second age of 56.95 -- 1.08 Ma comes from a younger dyke near Olini village which cuts across the lava flows of the area. The age correlates well with the Mandla lavas which are chemically similar to the uppermost Poladpur, Ambenali and Mahabaleshwar Formation lavas of SW Deccan. Our study shows that the dyke activities occurred in two phases, with the second one representing the terminal stage.

连续激光阶段升温^(40)Ar/^(39)Ar地质年代测定方法研究

利用CW型Nd:YAG连续激光器作为加热源,配以高灵敏度的英国产MM1200B气体质谱计,建成了连续激光阶段升温^(40)Ar/^(39)Ar地质年代测定方法。该方法的测定对象可以是所有能用于传统^(40)Ar/^(39)Ar法测年的样品,特别适用于年轻地质样品和沉积岩中自生粘土矿物的年龄测定。

砂岩储层自生伊利石^40Ar-^39Ar定年技术及油气成藏年龄探讨

油气成藏年龄是石油地质学和同位素年代学共同面临的科学难题之一。本文探讨砂岩储层自生伊利石40Ar-39Ar阶段加热技术获得油气成藏年龄的可能性。样品采自南海珠江口盆地第三纪珠海组砂岩储层,采用冷冻加热循环技术缓慢碎裂样品,以减少碎屑长石混入量。释出气体首先经过专门研制的纯化装置,有效地除弃有机杂质气体,然后经过2个NP10Zr/Al泵进一步纯化。06ZJ26I伊利石40Ar-39Ar激光阶段加热分析获得了阶梯状上升的年龄谱。开始3个最低激光能量阶段加权平均年龄(12.1±2.2)Ma(2σ)解释为自生伊利石的最小年龄,可能代表了油气成藏的最大年龄;而较高激光能量阶段坪年龄(98.0±0.9)Ma则代表了砂岩中陆源碎屑长石的年龄。与传统K-Ar法相比,40Ar-39Ar法可以揭示伊利石样品更多的年代学信息。

东川汤丹铜矿床石英真空击碎及其粉末阶段加热^(40)Ar-^(39)Ar年龄谱的含义

采用真空击碎技术提取东川汤丹铜矿床石英流体包裹体进行40Ar-39Ar法年龄测定，获得了逐渐下降的阶梯形年龄谱，表明流体包裹体含有过剩氩;数据点在40Ar／36Ar-39Ar／36Ar图解上构成等时线，等时线年龄为（712±33）Ma，代表了矿床的形成年龄。随后对其粉末进行40Ar-39Ar阶段加热（100—800℃）分析，形成相对比较平坦的年龄谱，坪年龄为（317±6）Ma（39Ar占45％，含真空击碎分析在内），粉末加热分析全部数据点构成的等时线年龄为（321±13）Ma。电子探针分析和显微镜观察证实了该石英样品中含有粒径大于100μm，K2O含量为8％-10％，形成时间明显晚于石英的白云母类富钾矿物，粉末阶段加热分析结果表明～320Ma应为后期白云母类矿物的年龄。

大兴安岭北部砂宝斯金矿床含金石英脉^40Ar／^39Ar年龄及其构造意义

砂宝斯金矿床是大兴安岭北部唯一一个大型岩金矿床。本文应用石英真空击碎和阶段加热40 Ar/39 Ar定年技术,首次获得了砂宝斯金矿床的成矿年龄。石英真空击碎40Ar/39Ar定年方法获得了石英脉中原生包裹体等时线年龄为130.1±1.3Ma;石英粉末阶段加热40 Ar/39 Ar定年方法获得石英脉中钾长石微晶的等时线年龄为133.1±3.5Ma。石英脉中原生包裹体和钾长石微晶的年龄较吻合,~130Ma代表了含金石英脉的形成年龄。砂宝斯金矿床的成矿时代为早白垩世,形成于蒙古-鄂霍茨克造山带后碰撞阶段的挤压向伸展转换期。

闪锌矿^(40)Ar/^(39)Ar真空击碎与阶段加热定年技术

凡口铅锌矿闪锌矿样品40Ar/39Ar真空击碎实验释出较高的39ArK,电子探针分析证实了闪锌矿中含有丰富的钾矿物微晶,因此对该闪锌矿真空击碎分析后的固体粉末继续进行40Ar/39Ar阶段加热分析。真空击碎分析获得了两条明显分开的等时线,对应的等时线年龄～235Ma和～270Ma分别代表了次生、原生流体包裹体的形成年龄。固体粉末阶段加热分析获得了闪锌矿中钾矿物微晶的年龄为～271Ma,与该闪锌矿原生包裹体年龄一致,代表了闪锌矿的成矿年龄。真空击碎和阶段加热实验得到截然不同的K/Ca比值,表明真空击碎法提取的气体主要来自流体包裹体,而加热法释出的气体则主要来自钾矿物微晶。闪锌矿40Ar/39Ar真空击碎与阶段加热分析技术将为探索铅锌矿床直接定年提供新的技术手段。

基于MM1200B质谱系统的MDD模式^(40)Ar/^(39)Ar实验技术及其在阿尔金山中生代冷却中研究中的应用

基于MM1 2 0 0B惰性气体质谱系统 ,建立多重扩散域 (MDD)模式40 Ar 39Ar热年代学实验方法 ,应用该方法的实验结果结合其它年代学数据 ,讨论了阿尔金山中生代的冷却历史。

The ^(40)Ar-^(39)Ar ages of hornblendes in Grt-Pl-bearing amphibolite from the Larsemann Hils,East Antarctica and their geological implication

In this paper we reported the 40 Ar 39 Ar dating results of hornblendes in Grt Pl bearing amphibolite from the Larsemann Hills, East Antarctica. Their apparent ages respectively are 1586 Ma, 1011 1080 Ma, 761 Ma, 529 582 Ma. Their plateau ages of 1036 Ma and 554 Ma as well as an Ar Ar isochron age of 1010 Ma have also been obtained respectively. These isotopic dating results for the first time by the Ar Ar method for hornblendes completely record almost all the structural metamorphic thermal events that this region experienced, and provide an answer to the controversial question on the structural metamorphic thermal events of this region in recent several years, namely, which one is more important, the late Proterozoic 1000 Ma event (Grenvillian) or the early Palaeozoic 500 Ma event ( Pan African), as well as whether the former exists or not. The 40 Ar 39 Ar dating results of hornblendes show that the Larsemann Hills experienced a complicated poly metamorphic evolutionary history, and their protoliths were probably formed in early to mid Proterozoic. The late Proterozoic 1000 Ma event (Grenvillian) has been confirmed to be a predominant tectonothermal event whilst the early Palaeozoic 500 Ma event (Pan African) has been confirmed just to be the last strong tectonothermal event in this region.

Early Paleozoic basement diorite of arc-magmatism from Kutch basin, Western India

In this study,we report for thefirst time an Early Palaeozoic basement diorite from the drilled well Nirona-A in the Banni Half-Graben of the Kutch basin,western India.The 40Ar–39Ar dates provided a plateau age of 441.84±2.66 Ma and another pseudo plateau of 441.28±5.82 to 388.08±16.65 Ma for the basement diorite.These ages constrain the basement formation age to the Late Ordovician-Early Silurian period.The obtained basement ages are correlatable with the later part of Cambro-Ordovician alkaline magmatism that has been reported from the Huqf area in Central Oman,whereas their lithological and petrographic correlativity with base-ment diorites occurring in the Dinsi Body of Nagar Parkar igneous complex in Pakistan can also be envisaged.The geochemical studies characterized the diorite with enrich-ment of LILE(Rb,Ba,and K)and LREE(La,Ce,Nd),strong depletion of HFSE(Nb,Sr,P,and Ti),along with weakly negative Eu anomalies.The geochemical signatures indicate their petrogenetic affiliation with mantle-derived magmas,as well as their tectonic setting to be arc-related,having post-collisional continental-arc type affinity.The*440 Ma basement of Kutch,therefore,appears to rep-resent the later thermal event associated with the reworked Neoproterozoic subduction-related suite from Greater India’s northwest edge,which has implications for Gond-wana assembly in the northwest Indian subcontinent.

Eruption of the Continental Flood Basalts at -259 Ma in the Emeishan Large Igneous Province, SW China: Evidence from Laser Microprobe ^(40)Ar/^(39)Ar Dating

A suite of continental flood basalts sampled over a vast exposure and stratigraphic thickness in the Emeishan large igneous province （LIP）, SW China was investigated for laser microprobe ^40Ar/^39Ar dating. There are two ^40Ar/^39Ar age groups for these basalts, corresponding to 259-246 Ma and 177-137 Ma, respectively. A well-defined isochron gives an eruption age of huge quantities of mafic magmas at 258.9±3.4 Ma, which is identical to previous dating and paleontological data. Much younger ^40Ar/^39Ar ages for some basalts with Iow-greenschist metamorphic facies probably recorded a late thermo-tectonic event caused by collision between the Yangtze and Qiangtang continental blocks during the Mesozoic, which resulted in the reset of argon isotope system. The ^40Ar/^39Ar age data, we present here, combined with previous dating and paleontological data, suggest relatively short duration （about 3 Ma） of mafic volcanism, which have important implication on mantle plume genesis of the Emeishan continental flood basalts in the LIP.

Collision Event during 177-135 Ma on the Eastern Marginof the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau: Evidence from 40Ar/ 39Ar Dating for Basaltson the Western Margin of the Yangtze Platform

Geochronology of continental flood basalts sampled from the Emei large igneous province (LIP) on the western margin of the Yangtze platform was investigated by the laser microprobe 40Ar/39Ar dating technique. These basalts yield a fairly wide range of 40Ar/39Ar ages, varying from 259 to 135 Ma. One basalt sample, at least altered, recorded the oldest 40Ar/39Ar age of about 259 Ma, corresponding to a peak eruption age of the Emei LIP continental flood basalts. Most of the samples yield much younger ages from 135 to 177 Ma, which are consistent with the K-Ar ages for the same samples (122.8-172.1 Ma). The dating data suggest that these Permian basalts had been widely affected by the regional tectonothermal event at 177-135 Ma. The event was probably caused by the convergence and collision among the Laurasia, Yangtze and Qiangtang-Qamdo continental blocks on the eastern margin of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau after the late Triassic. The age of the event reflects the timing of the peak collisional orogeny.

Timing and Processes of Ore Formation in the Qingchengzi Polymetallic Orefield, Northeast China: Evidence from 40Ar/39Ar Geochronology

The Qingchengzi orefield is a large polymetallic ore concentration area in the Liaodong peninsula,northeastern China,that includes twelve Pb-Zn deposits and five Au-Ag deposits along its periphery.The ore-forming age remains much disputed,which prevents the identification of the relationship between the mineralization and the associated magmatism.In this paper,we quantitatively present the feasibility of making ore mineral 40Ar/39Ar dating and report reliable 40Ar/39Ar ages of lamprophyre groundmass,K-feldspar and sphalerite from the Zhenzigou deposit.Direct and indirect methods are applied to constrain the timing of mineralization,which plays a vital role in discussing the contribution of multistage magmatism to ore formation.The low-potassium sphalerite yielded an inverse isochron age of 232.8±41.5 Ma,which features a relatively large uncertainty.Two lamprophyre groundmasses got reliable inverse isochron ages of 193.2±1.3 Ma and 152.3±1.5 Ma,respectively.K-feldspar yielded a precise inverse isochron age of 134.9±0.9 Ma.These four ages indicate that the mineralization is closely associated with Mesozoic magmatism.Consequently,regarding the cooling age of the earliest Mesozoic Shuangdinggou intrusion(224.2±1.2 Ma)as the initial time of mineralization,we can further constrain the age of the sphalerite to 224–191 Ma.These new and existing geochronological data,combined with the interaction cutting or symbiotic relationship between the lamprophyre veins and ore veins,suggest that the Pb-Zn-Au-Ag mineralization in the Qingchengzi orefield mainly occurred during three periods:the late Triassic(ca.224–193 Ma),the late Jurassic(ca.167–152 Ma)and the early Cretaceous(ca.138–134 Ma).This polymetallic deposits are shown to have been formed during multiple events coinciding with periods of the Mesozoic magmatic activity.In contrast,the Proterozoic magmatism and submarine exhalative and hydrothermal sedimentation in the Liaolaomo paleorift served mainly to transport and concentrate the ore-forming substances at the Liaohe Group with no associated Pb-Zn-Au-Ag mineralization.

Thermal History of the Naruo Porphyry Deposit in the Duolong Ore District,Western Tibet:Evidence from U-Pb,^(40)Ar/^(39)Ar and(U-Th)/He Thermochronology

The Naruo porphyry copper deposit containing more than 2 Mt of copper is located in the Duolong ore district in the west of the Bangongco–Nujiang belt in central Tibet.New zircon U-Pb,biotite^(40)Ar/^(39)Ar,zircon(U-Th)/He ages,published age data together with thermal modeling were presented in this paper to investigate the thermal history of Naruo deposit.Thermal modeling reveals a prolonged magmatic-hydrothermal evolution firstly cooling from~700℃to~350℃at 120 Ma,then cooling to 230℃at 106 Ma and maintaining at 200℃from 106 to 90 Ma which is attributed to multiple magmatic events and thermal effect of strike-slip fault.Affected by thrust nappe structure,the sample was consistent with 120℃from 70 to 63 Ma.The Naruo deposit started to experience exhumation at a rate of~0.07 km/Myr since 60 Ma which is related to India-Asia collision.The prolonged magmatic-hydrothermal evolution process might have important influence on the Naruo deposit.The ore-related intrusions preserved in the foot walls of strike-slip fault and thrust nappe structure are the objects of future exploration in the Duolong ore district.

含水矿物在真空下的释Ar机制:Ar-Ar热年代学面临的新问题

地质体的实际情况、激光显微探针束研究、XRD和SEM观测以及真空加热下Ar的释放特征都表明体积扩散不是含水矿物在真空加热中释放Ar的唯一机制。在低温下 ,Ar的释放主要受由缺陷引起的短程扩散和体积扩散共同作用的多途径扩散机制制约 ;而在高温下 ,由于含水矿物在真空中不够稳定 ,Ar的释放受到脱羟基、脱氢、氧化反应、分层作用等造成的晶体结构改变的强烈影响。含水矿物在高温下的氧化分解会导致矿物中原始Ar浓度梯度的均一化 ,因而无法得到真实的Ar分布剖面 ,也无法据此计算矿物的封闭温度 ,并进而可能影响到ArAr年龄坪的地质意义。

Thermal Evolution of the Tanlu Fault Zone on the Eastern Margin of the Dabie Mountains and Its Tectonic Implications

Five samples of muscovite from mylonites of the earlier Tanlu ductile shear zone on the eastern margin of the Dabie Mountains yield 40Ar/39Ar ages ranging from 178 Ma to 196 Ma. Three of them have reliable plateau ages of 188.7±0.7 Ma, 189.7±0.6 Ma and 192.5±0.7 Ma respectively, which indicates a syn-orogenic, sinistral strike-slip thermal event. This displacement movement derived from the continent-continent collision of the North and South China blocks took place in the Early Jurassic and after uplifting of high-pressure to ultrahigh-pressure slabs to the mid-crust. It is suggested that during the collision the Tanlu fault zone was an intracontinental transform fault caused by differential subduction speeds. The 40Ar/39Ar ages of mylonite whole-rock and muscovite from the later Tanlu ductile shear zone suggest another sinistral strike-slip cooling event at 128 Ma. During this strike-slip faulting, large-scale intrusion and doming uplift occurred in the eastern part of the Dabie orogenic belt. Data of K-feldspar 40Ar/39Ar MDD and apatite fission-track analysis from metamorphic rocks indicate two high-speed cooling events experienced by the Tanlu fault zone, which took place at 90 Ma and 45-58 Ma respectively. They correspond respectively to two phases of extensional activities in the Late Cretaceous and Eogene as well as development of the Qianshan fault-controlled basin to the east of the Tanlu fault zone. The cooling times recorded by K-feldspar and apatite show that the uplifting in the Dabie orogenic belt occured earlier than that on the eastern margin occupied by the Tanlu fault zone. The above phenomena suggest that the uplifting of the Dabie orogenic belt during the Late Cretaceous to Eogene was not controlled by the Tanlu normal faulting, but as a result of the lithospheric delamination.

Behavior of argon gas release from manganese oxide minerals as revealed by ^(40)Ar/^(39)Ar laser incremental heating analysis

Manganese oxides in association with paleo-weathering may provide significant insights into the multiple factors affecting the formation and evolution of weathering profiles, such as temperature, precipitation, and biodiversity. Laser probe step-heating analysis of supergene hollandite and cryptomelane samples collected from central Queensland, Australia, yield well-defined plateaus and consistent isochron ages, confirming the feasibilityy dating very-fined supergene manganese oxides by 40Ar/39 Ar technique. Two distinct structural sites hosting Ar isotopes can be identified in light of their degassing behaviors obtained by incremental heating analyses. The first site, releasing its gas fraction at the laser power 0.2-0.4 W, yields primarily 40Aratm, 38Aratm, and 36Aratm(atmospheric Ar isotopes). The second sites yield predominantly 40Ar*(radiogenic 40Ar), 39Ark, and Ark (nucleogenic components), at -0.5-1.0 W. There is no significant Ar gas released at the laser power higher than 1.0 W, indicating the

New Discovery of the Early Cretaceous Volcanic Rocks on the Barton Peninsula,King George Island,Antarctica and Its Geological Significance

Ages determined with the 40Ar/39Ar isotopic system affirms the Early Cretaceous volcanic activity in the Barton Peninsula, King George Island, Antarctica. Two specimens of basaltic andesite collected from the lower-most volcanic sequence of the peninsula were irradiated and analyzed in different experiments, yielding an identical age spectrum, and two magmatic thermal events of the Early Cretaceous (120.4±1.6 Ma, 119±1 Ma) and Early Tertiary (53.1±1.5 Ma, 52±1 Ma) are distinguished. The former is interpreted to represent the primary cooling age of basaltic andesite, whereas the latter is the thermal reset age caused by the intrusion of granitic pluton. These new ages clearly indicate that volcanism was active during the Early Cretaceous on the Barton Peninsula and that intensive hydrothermal alteration and mineralization of Mesozoic volcanic rocks resulted from Tertiary magmatism.