Crustal wide-angle reflection imaging along Lianxian-Gangkou profile in Guangdong province,China

A 400 km-long wide-angle seismic experiment along Lianxian-Gangkou profile in South China was carried out to study contact relationship between southeast continental margin of Yangtze block and northwest continental margin of Cathaysia block. We reconstructed crustal wide-angle reflection structure by the depth-domain pre-stack migration and the crustal velocity model constructed from the traveltime fitting. The wide-angle reflection section shows different reflection （from crystalline basement and Moho） pattern beneath the Yangtze and Cathaysia blocks, and suggests the Wuchuan-Sihui fault is the boundary between them. A cluster of well-developed reflections on Moho and in its underlying topmost mantle probably comes from alternative thin layers, which may be seismic signature of strong interaction between crust and mantle in the tectonic environment of lithosphere extension.

Crustal structure of the eastern Dabie orogenic belt from the seismic tomography and wide-angle reflection studies

The studies of seismic tomography and wide-angle reflection have been carried out to reveal the velocity structUrebeneath the eastern Dabie orogenic belt. The result from the seismic tomography shows the high velocity bodiesmight be positioned to a depth of only about 1 .5 km below sea level within the Dabie ultra-high pressure metamorphic (UHPM) belt; the fan-profile shows the Shuihou-Wuhe fault, the demarcation between the South Dabieand the North Dabie, slopes to the south-west at a dip angle of about 45° in the bottom of upper crust. The wideangle reflection shows the middle crustal boundaries and the complex features from the lower crust.

High-Resolution Seismic Reflection Profiling of the Fenhe Fault in Taiyuan City

In this paper, we demonstrate the high resolution seismic reflection data for a depth range of several hundred meters across the Fenhe fault in Taiyuan city, China. In combination with the relevant borehole logs, these data provide useful constraints on the accurate position, geometry and deformation rate of the fault, as well as the kinematics of recent fault motion. The high resolution seismic reflection profiling revealed that the western branch of the Fenhe fault is a high angle, eastward dipping, oblique normal fault, and cutting up to the lower part of the Quaternary system. It was revealed that the top breaking point of this fault is at a depth of ～70m below the ground surface. A borehole log across the Fenhe fault permitted us to infer that there are two high angle, oppositely dipping, oblique normal faults. The eastem branch lies beneath the eastern embankment of the Fenhe river, dipping to the west and cutting into the Holocene late Pleistocene strata with a maximum vertical offset of ～8m. Another borehole log across the northern segment of the Fenhe fault indicates that the western branch of this fault has cut into the Holocene late Pleistocene strata with a maximum vertical offset of ～6m. The above mentioned data provide a minimum average Pleistocene Holocene vertical slip rate of 0 06～0 08mm/a and a maximum average large earthquake recurrence interval of 5 0～6 7ka for the Fenhe fault.

Characteristics of crustal variation and extensional break-up in the Western Pacific back-arc region based on a wide-angle seismic profile

The marginal sea and back-arc basins in the Western Pacific Ocean have become the focus of tectonics due to their unique tectonic location.To understand the deep crustal structure in the back-arc region,we present a 545-kmlong active-source ocean bottom seismometer(OBS)wide-angle reflection/refraction profile in the East China Sea.The P wave velocity model shows that the Moho depth rises significantly,from approximately 30 km in the East China Sea shelf to approximately 16 km in the axis of the Okinawa Trough.The lower crustal high-velocity zone(HVZ)in the southern Okinawa Trough,with V_(p) of 6.8-7.3 km/s,is a remarkable manifestation of the mantle material upwelling and accretion to the lower crust.This confirms that the lower crustal high-velocity mantle accretion is developed in the southern Okinawa Trough.During the process of back-arc extension,the crustal structure of the southern Okinawa Trough is completely invaded and penetrated by the upper mantle material in the axis region.In some areas of the southern central graben,the crust may has broken up and entered the initial stage of seafloor spreading.The discontinuous HVZs in the lower crust in the back-arc region also indicate the migration of spreading centers in the back-arc region since the Cenozoic.The asthenosphere material upwelling in the continent-ocean transition zone is constantly driving the lithosphere eastward for episodic extension,and is causing evident tectonic migration in the Western Pacific back-arc region.

Structural Deformation of Zoigê Basin Along the Deep Seismic Reflection Profile

Being the core of the Songpan-Ganze block,Zoig(?) Basin is a favorable zone of oil and gas exploration. And it not only is the important deposition area of the northern Songpan-Garze in the Middle-Late Triassic, but also impacts on the formation and evolution of the structural belt.To further understand the Zoig(?) Basin, we reprocessed the 0-20.0 s data of the Tangke-Hezuo deep seismic reflection profiles across the majority

Using large dynamite shots to image the structure of the Moho from deep seismic reflection experiment between the Sichuan basin and Qinling orogen

The Qinling orogen was formed as a result of the collision between the North and South China blocks. The Qinling orogen represents the location at which the southern and northern parts of the Chinese mainland col- lided, and it＇s also the intersection of the Central China orogen and the north-south tectonic belt. There is evidence of strong deformation in this orogen, and it has had a long and complex geological history. We investigated the structure of the Moho in the southern Qinling orogen using large dynamite shot imaging techniques. By integrating the analysis of the single-shot and the move-out corrections profile, we determined the structure of the Moho beneath the northern Dabashan thrust belt and the southern Qinling orogen, including the mantle suture beneath Fenghuang mountain. The Moho is divided into two parts by the mantle suture zone beneath Fenghuang mountain： （1） from Ziyang to Hanyin, the north-dipping Moho is at about 45-55 km depth and the depth increases rapidly; and （2） from Hanyin to Ningshan, the south-dipping Moho is at about 40-45 km depth and shallows slowly. The mantle suture is located beneath Fenghuang mountain, and the Moho overlaps at this location： the shallower Moho is connected to the northern part of China, and the deeper Moho is connected to the southern part. This may indicate that the lithosphere in the Sichuan basin subducts to the Qinling block and that the subduction frontier reaches at least as far as Fenghuang mountain.

Seismic Acquisition Parameters Analysis for Deep Weak Reflectors in the South Yellow Sea

The Mesozoic-Paleozoic marine residual basin in the South Yellow Sea(SYS) is a significant deep potential hydrocarbon reservoir. However, the imaging of the deep prospecting target is quite challenging due to the specific seismic-geological conditions. In the Central and Wunansha Uplifts, the penetration of the seismic wavefield is limited by the shallow high-velocity layers(HVLs) and the weak reflections in the deep carbonate rocks. With the conventional marine seismic acquisition technique, the deep weak reflection is difficult to image and identify. In this paper, we could confirm through numerical simulation that the combination of multi-level air-gun array and extended cable used in the seismic acquisition is crucial for improving the imaging quality. Based on the velocity model derived from the geological interpretation, we performed two-dimensional finite difference forward modeling. The numerical simulation results show that the use of the multi-level air-gun array can enhance low-frequency energy and that the wide-angle reflection received at far offsets of the extended cable has a higher signal-to-noise ratio(SNR) and higher energy. Therefore, we have demonstrated that the unconventional wide-angle seismic acquisition technique mentioned above could overcome the difficulty in imaging the deep weak reflectors of the SYS, and it may be useful for the design of practical seismic acquisition schemes in this region.

Joint exploration of crustal structure in Fuzhou basin and its vicinities by deep seismic reflection and high-resolution refraction as well as wide-angle reflection/refraction

The Fuzhou basin and its vicinities are located at the northern end of the southeastern coastal seismic zone of the mainland of China. By the joint explorations of high-resolution seismic refraction and wide-angle reflection/refraction as well as deep seismic reflection in the region, which is the first synthetic profile in China, its fine velocity structure and geometric structure from the ground to Moho discontinuity is obtained. The result shows that the crust is obviously layered with a thickness of about 32 km. Basically, it consists of two parts: upper crust and lower crust. The velocity of the upper crust is 5.9-6.2 km/s in which there is a 3-4-km-thick weak low-velocity layer between the depths of 10-15 km, while the velocity of the lower crust in the range of 6.3-7.2 km/s. There exists a strong velocity gradient layer about 3 km thick above the Moho discontinuity whose velocity increases from 6.5 to 7.27 km/s. There exist high-angle normal faults that are small in size and extend only in the shallow crust. These faults are the secondary developed on the hanging wall of westward dipping low-angle normal faults. Thus, their seismogenic ability is limited, however, there exists a high-angle deep fault in the crust from Changle-Zaoan fault zone to seashore fault zone. This deep fault has cut the interface between the upper and lower crusts and Moho discontinuity, and may be the deep structure to trigger destructive earthquake source in future to affect Fuzhou City. These results have advanced the detecting precision of the deep structure in the southeastern coastal seismic zone of the mainland of China. In the aspect of the combined feature of the deep and shallow extensional structures that consist of the westward dipping low-angle normal faults and secondary normal faults on their hanging walls in the upper crust, it is firstly obtained that a united structural interpretation has deepened the knowledge about the deep dynamic process in the southeastern coastal seismic zone. At the same time, in synthetic application of deep seismic detecting methods for deep tectonic background, it possesses a wide referenced meaning to the other regions.

The deep background of large-scale,Mesozoic Cu-Au-W metallogenesis in northeastern South China:Constraints from Yingshan-Changshan wide-angle seismic reflection/refraction data

To investigate the geodynamic processes of Mesozoic large-scale mineralization in South China,we deployed a 350-km-long,wide-angle seismic reflection/refraction sounding profile between Yingshan in Hubei and Changshan in Zhejiang.This profile traverses the Cu-Au metallogenic belt in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River(YMB),the Jiangnan W-polymetal metallogenic belt(JNMB),and the Qinhang Cu-polymetal metallogenic belt(QHMB).Our imaging results reveal various interesting velocity features along the profile.(1)The velocity structure is characterized by vertical layering and horizontal blocking;(2)the YMB is marked by high velocity and high V_(p)/V_(s) ratios in general with a significantly uplifted Moho interface and a thin crust of~31 km,and the lower crust contains high-velocity anomalies and has the characteristics of a crustmantle transition zone;(3)the JNMB is bounded by the Jiangnan fault and Jingdezhen-Huangshan fault and has low-velocity anomalies and low V_(p)/V_(s) ratios;and(4)the QHMB is characterized by high-velocity anomalies and high V_(p)/V_(s) ratios.The highvelocity anomalies in the YMB and QHMB represent relatively Cu-Au-rich mafic juvenile lower crust.The formation of this kind of crust is considered to be related to mantle-derived magma underplating or residues of Neoproterozoic oceanic crustal materials,and it also provided sources for large-scale Cu-Au mineralization in the Mesozoic.The JNMB has features similar to those of ancient crusts enriched in W-Sn,the partial melting of which played a leading role in the formation of the superlarge W deposits in this belt.Considering these results and other regional geological data,we propose that a large-scale oblique upwelling of the asthenosphere along the collisional belt of the Yangtze and Cathaysia blocks during the Mesozoic was the deep driving mechanism for the explosive mineralization of Cu,Au,and W in northeastern South China.The boundaries of the blocks or terrains and discontinuities of the lithosphere were the main channels for deep heat and magmas and therefore controlled the spatial distribution of the metallogenic belt.

Lithospheric structure and faulting characteristics of the Helan Mountains and Yinchuan Basin： Results of deep seismic reflection profiling

The Helan Mountains and Yinchuan Basin(HM-YB) are located at the northern end of the North-South tectonic belt,and form an intraplate tectonic deformation zone in the western margin of the North China Craton(NCC).The HM-YB has a complicated history of formation and evolution,and is tectonically active at the present day.It has played a dominant role in the complex geological structure and modern earthquake activities of the region.A 135-km-long deep seismic reflection profile across the HM-YB was acquired in early 2014,which provides detailed information of the lithospheric structure and faulting characteristics from near-surface to various depths in the region.The results show that the Moho gradually deepens from east to west in the depth range of 40-48 km along the profile.Significant differences are present in the crustal structure of different tectonic units,including in the distribution of seismic velocities,depths of intra-crustal discontinuities and undulation pattern of the Moho.The deep seismic reflection profile further reveals distinct structural characteristics on the opposite sides of the Helan Mountains.To the east,The Yellow River fault,the eastern piedmont fault of the Helan Mountains,as well as multiple buried faults within the Yinchuan Basin are all normal faults and still active since the Quaternary.These faults have controlled the Cenozoic sedimentation of the basin,and display a "negative-flower" structure in the profile.To the west,the Bayanhaote fault and the western piedmont fault of the Helan Mountains are east-dipping thrust faults,which caused folding,thrusting,and structural deformation in the Mesozoic stratum of the Helan Mountains uplift zone.A deep-penetrating fault is identified in the western side of the Yinchuan Basin.It has a steep inclination cutting through the middle-lower crust and the Moho,and may be connected to the two groups of faults in the upper crust.This set of deep and shallow fault system consists of both strike-slip,thrust,and normal faults formed over different eras,and provides the key tectonic conditions for the basin-mountains coupling,crustal deformation and crust-mantle interactions in the region.The other important phenomenon revealed from the results of deep seismic reflection profiling is the presence of a strong upper mantle reflection(UMR) at a depth of 82-92 km beneath the HM-YB,indicating the existence of a rapid velocity variation or a velocity discontinuity in that depth range.This is possibly a sign of vertical structural inhomogeneity in the upper mantle of the region.The seismic results presented here provide new clues and observational bases for further study of the deep structure,structural differences among various blocks and the tectonic relationship between deep and shallow processes in the western NCC.

反射地震剖面揭示容城凸起基岩面和断裂结构及其对地热成因的启示

容城凸起是华北地区地热资源富集区域之一,探测容城凸起基岩面的精细结构、埋深和断裂,对理解该区地热资源的分布和富集以及地热资源的勘查与开发具有重要意义。本文基于中国地质科学院2018年在容城凸起采集的SN向反射地震剖面数据,通过对反射数据精细处理,获得容城凸起4 km以浅的高精度几何结构,经地热孔资料标定后开展解释。主要获得以下4点认识:容城凸起基岩面以上新生代沉积地层呈近水平层状分布,这些近水平地层对容城地热田起到保温盖层作用;容城凸起基岩面埋深在700~3000 m之间,其凸起中心部位变化相对平缓,向周边迅速加深到3000 m左右;牛南断裂和容东断裂在深部延伸交汇,与其他中、小型断裂组成的断裂系统为水和热的传导提供了通道和空间;基岩面凸起的几何结构有利于热流在凸起下方汇聚。

三门峡断陷盆地及邻区深部结构及成因——来自深地震反射与大地电磁测深的证据

近年来,围绕三门峡断陷盆地中的油气、地热资源做了大量的工作,成因机制研究较少,严重制约了矿产资源的勘探开发。本文在前人研究工作基础上,结合野外地质调查并利用高精度深反射地震剖面、大地电磁(MT)、重磁等地球物理探测技术,对三门峡盆地进行综合研究。发现三门峡盆地主要由东、西2个负花状构造构成,西花状构造体大于东花状构造体;盆地东部边缘以观音堂隆起与洛阳凹陷相邻,观音堂隆起发育有壳内透镜状低速体,其东、西两侧均发育有规模较大的隐伏逆断层。研究区内莫霍面为大约5 km厚度滑脱层,在深反射地震剖面上表现为蚯蚓状反射特征,指示滑脱层为西向运动。莫霍面滑脱层上部与下部新发现多条弧形断层。地质与地球物理资料综合研究表明,莫霍面滑脱层的解耦作用是三门峡断陷盆地花状构造形成的主因;在不同时空构造力系作用下,形成研究区新生代全地壳旋转花状构造盆地。

The crustal structure under Sanjiang and its dynamic implications:Revealed by seismic reflection/refraction profile between Zhefang and Binchuan,Yunnan

The fault belts in Sanjiang mainly include Jinshajiang-Honghe fault, Lancangjiang fault and Nujiang fault (called Sanjiang faults) in western Yunnan Province, China. By interpreting the wide-angle seismic reflection/refraction profile between Zhefang and Binchuan, which crosses Tengchong and Baoshan blocks in Dianxi (western Yunnan) tectonic zone, we recon- struct the crustal structure with seismic traveltime tomography for crustal P-wave velocity and the seismic scattering image for crustal seismic reflection structure. In this paper, we firstly present the crustal structure images of P-wave velocity and seismic reflection under the wide-angle seismic profile. These results demonstrate that, the crustal velocity structure and seismic reflec- tion structure along the profile can be divided into 3 segments, and there is an obvious difference of crustal structure among the eastern, the western and the middle segment. Generally, crustal P-wave velocities in the Baoshan segment are 0.1―0.2 km/s slower and seismic reflection am- plitudes from Moho discontinuity are stronger than the other 2 segments. In the studied area, crustal thickness is about 40 km, and shows the thickening tendency from west to east along the profile. Additionally, it can be seen that there is one strong-amplitude seismic reflection event as bright points at the depths of 8―10 km, along the segment of 80―115 km of the profile (south- ward of Tengchong); and seismic reflection wave-field from Moho discontinuity varies obviously along the lateral direction. Finally, we make some discussions on the crustal thickening pattern in the Sanjiang fault belt, structural environment of earthquake development and the contact rela- tionship between the Tengchong block, Banshan block and Luxi trough.

East-west crustal structure and “down-bowing” Moho under the northern Tibet revealed by wide-angle seismic profile

We recognized 6 sets of reflecting P- and S-wave events from Moho and other interfaces within the crust, respectively, with the wide-angle seismic data acquired from 510 km-long Selincuo-Ya'anduo profile in the northern Tibet, fitted the observed events with forward modeling, and interpreted crustal structure of P- and S-wave velocities and Poisson's ratio under the profile. The results demonstrate that the crustal structure between Yarlungzangbo and Bangong-Nujiang sutures changes abruptly, and the crust is the thickest at the middle part of the profile with thickness of 80 km or more. The 'down-bowing' Moho is the striking feature for the crustal variation along the west-east direction. The Moho uplifts with steps, and the uplifting rate westward is greater than that eastward. The heterogeneity of P- and S-wave velocities exists both vertically and horizontally, and one lower velocity layer (LVL) exists with the depth range of 27-34 km and the thickness range of 5-7 km. For the upper crust, Poisson's ratio is the lowest at the middle part of the profile; for the lower crust, the Poisson's ratio at the east segment is lower than that at west segment, which means that the crustal rigidity for the upper crust is different from the lower crust, and the lower crust under the east segment of the profile is more ductile. We infer that the substance in the lower crust endured eastward flow along with the collision between Eurasian and Indian plates, and the 'down-bowing' Moho is attributable to the multi-phase E-W tectonic processes.

Deep crustal structure of Baiyun Sag, northern South China Sea revealed from deep seismic reflection profile

This paper discusses deep crustal architecture of the Baiyun Sag of the Pearl River Mouth Basin, northern South China Sea based on velocity analysis, time-depth con- version and seismic interpretation of the deep seismic reflec- tion profile DSRP-2002. The profile was acquired and proc- essed to 14 S TWT by the China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) in 2002. It extends across the Baiyun Sag of the Pearl River Mouth Basin, from the northern continental shelf of the SCS to the deepwater province. As the first deep seismic reflection profile in the Pearl River Mouth Basin,this profile reveals seismic phases from basement down to upper most mantle. The Moho surface appears in the profile as an undulating layer of varying thickness of 1-3 km. It is not a single reflector interface, but a velocity gradient or intercon- version layer. The crust thins stepwisely from the shelf to the continental slope and the abyssal plain (from north to south), and also thins under depocenters. The crustal thickness is only 7 km in the depocenter of the main Baiyun Sag, which corresponds to a Moho upwelling mirroring the basement topography. In the lower slope and the ocean-continental transition zone of the southernmost portion of the profile, three sub-parallel, NW-dipping strong reflectors found at depths around 10-21 km are interpreted as indications of a subducted Mesozoic oceanic crust. Crustal faults exist in the northern and southern boundaries of the Baiyun Sag. The intense and persistent subsidence of the Baiyun Sag might be related to the long-term activity of the crustal faults.

Shallow Water Body Data Processing Based on the Seismic Oceanography

Physical properties of sea water,such as salinity,temperature,density and acoustic velocity,could be demarcated through degradation of energy caused by water absorption,attenuation and other factors.To overcome the challenging difficulties in the quick monitoring of these physical properties,we have explored the high resolution marine seismic survey to instantly characterize them.Based on the unique wavefield propagating in the sea water,we have developed a new approach to suppress the noise caused by the shallow sea water disturbance and obtain useful information for estimating the sea water structure.This approach improves seismic data with high signal-to-noise ratio and resolution.The seismic reflection imaging can map the sea water structure acoustically.Combined with the knowledge of local water body structure profile over years,the instant model for predicting the sea water properties could be built using the seismic data acquired from the specially designed high precision marine seismic acquisition.This model can also be updated with instant observation and the complete data processing system.The present study has the potential value to many applications,such as 3D sea water monitoring,engineering evaluation,geological disaster assessment and environmental assessment.

Upper crustal structure under Jingtai–Hezuo profile in Northeastern Tibet from topography-dependent eikonal traveltime tomography

The Northeastern Tibetan plateau records Caledonian Qilian orogeny and Cenozoic reactivation by continental collision between the Indian and Asian plates. In order to provide the constraint on the Qilian orogenic mechanism and the expansion of the plateau,wide-angle seismic data was acquired along a 430 km-long profile between Jingtai and Hezuo. There is strong height variation along the profile,which is dealt by topography flattening scheme in our crustal velocity structure reconstruction. We herein present the upper crustal P-wave velocity structure model resulting from the interpretation of first arrival dataset from topography-dependent eikonal traveltime tomography. With topography flattening scheme to process real topography along the profile,the evenness of ray coverage times of the image area（upper crust）is improved,which provides upper crustal velocity model comparable to the classic traveltime tomography（with model expansion scheme to process irregular surface）. The upper crustal velocity model shows zoning character which matcheswith the tectonic division of the Qaidam-Kunlun-West Qinling belt,the Central and Northern Qilian,and the Alax blocks along the profile. The resultant upper crustal P-wave velocity model is expected to provide important base for linkage between the mapped surface geology and deep structure or geodynamics in Northeastern Tibet.

参量阵浅地层剖面的处理方法及在识别浅层天然气水合物中的应用

近年来,参量阵浅地层剖面以其简便的野外采集方式、高分辨率的浅部地层成像能力,迅速发展为海底浅层天然气水合物探测的有效方法。为了更好地获取东海浅层天然气水合物赋存区的地质信息,针对参量阵浅地层剖面数据开展了精细化处理。首先将异常振幅压制和空间振幅均衡等方法有机结合,解决了数据中的各种噪音和能量不均衡等问题,然后利用Hilbert变换提高地层分辨率,最后利用信号增强技术进一步提高同相轴连续性,获得了波组特征更清晰的地震剖面。处理后的参量阵浅地层剖面具有信噪比较高、连续性好、地层结构清晰等特点,可以更好地揭示空白带、气烟囱、亮点和火焰状异常等地震反射特征,为识别浅层天然气水合物赋存区地质信息奠定基础。对精细处理后的数据进一步开展曲率属性、瞬时振幅属性、相干属性等地震属性分析,结果显示,与浅层天然气水合物渗漏相关的声学异常能够被清晰地识别出来。此项研究一方面验证了参量阵浅地层剖面数据处理方法的可行性,另一方面也探索了属性分析技术在海底浅层天然气水合物识别方面的应用。

新生代柴达木盆地与周缘造山带的构造耦合

新生代以来,中国西部的一系列古老造山带和盆地在印-亚板块汇聚作用下重新复活,在青藏高原外围形成了现今全球最大的陆内挤压构造域,被称为环青藏高原盆山体系,其形成过程与机制对深入认识陆-陆碰撞如何影响大陆内部变形有重要意义。柴达木盆地是中国西部重要的新生代沉积盆地,四周均被巨型造山带所围限,共同构成了环青藏高原盆山体系北东段的主体。本文利用最新的石油地震勘探数据、地表地质和已发表的深反射地震数据,将上地壳变形与岩石圈深部变形有机结合,系统刻画了柴达木盆地与周缘三大造山带之间岩石圈尺度的构造耦合关系,在此基础上探讨环青藏高原盆山体系北东段的盆山汇聚过程与机制。柴达木盆地与南侧祁曼塔格—东昆仑山、北东侧南祁连山之间在上地壳尺度发育一系列倾向造山带的基底卷入高角度逆断裂体系,自新生代早期就开始活动,以垂直的基底抬升为主,水平缩短量有限;在下地壳和岩石圈地幔深度则发育倾向盆地一侧的深大断裂,使得柴达木盆地与周缘造山带之间发生截然的莫霍面错断。这些变形特征揭示柴达木盆地与南侧祁曼塔格—东昆仑山、北东侧南祁连山之间发育岩石圈尺度的构造楔,即盆地的岩石圈楔入至增厚的造山带下地壳,其发育主要受盆地与造山带岩石圈强度的横向不均一性控制。与上述挤压性盆山结构不同,阿尔金断裂作为一条巨型的左旋走滑断裂,直接切穿了柴达木盆地与西北侧阿尔金山的岩石圈,是柴达木盆地挤压成盆与变形的侧向边界。