Palaeozoic tectonic transition of the North Qilian Belt in the northern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, NW China: Insights from detrital zircon U–Pb geochronology and sedimentology

Under regional tectonic shortening in the northern margin of Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau, the fold-and-thrust belts composed of four thrust faults (North Qilian-Shan, North Yumu-Shan, South Heli-Shan, and North Jintanan-Shan) formed from southwest to northeast discontinuously sequentially in the Jiudong Basin area during Late Cenozoic. Meanwhile, the North Qilian-Shan, Yumu-Shan, and Heli-Shan ranges were formed successively, as the Earth's local surface was unequally uplifted. In this study, based on geological and geophysical observations, a simple two-dimensional elastic-plastic numerical finite element method model for a southwest-northeast section in Jiudong Basin is successfully established to simulate the spatiotemporal evolution of the local fold-and-thrust belts. Results show that the computed equivalent plastic strain concentration zones and the four observed thrust faults are consistently correlated in spatial position orientation and time sequence. The simulated upper-surface deformation is congruent with the observed topographic peaks and uplift sequences of the North Qilian-Shan, Yumu-Shan, and Heli-Shan ranges. This study provides a geodynamic basis for understanding the growth mechanism of the northern margin of Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau under tectonic horizontal shortening. Also, we provide a thorough sensitivity analysis for the model parameters of this particular geologic setting. Our sensitivity simulations, considering systematic case variations about the regional geometrical-material parameters, suggest the manifestation of three different possible evolution patterns of fold-and-thrust belts for a wedge above a decollement layer, with wedge plastic deformation migrating from 1) thick to thin end (well-known), 2) thin to thick end, and 3) both ends to middle. Finally, our results suggest that in this region, further growth of mountain ranges is expected to continue in the future.

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Detrital zircon U–Pb ages and Hf isotopic composition of the Ordovician Duguer quartz schist, central Tibetan Plateau: constraints on tectonic affinity and sedimentary source regions

Geological Magazine ◽

10.1017/s0016756816000212 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 154 (3) ◽

pp. 558-570 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

YIMING LIU ◽

CAI LI ◽

CHAOMING XIE ◽

JIANJUN FAN ◽

HAO WU

Keyword(s):

Tibetan Plateau ◽

Detrital Zircon ◽

Source Area ◽

Detrital Zircons ◽

The Tibetan Plateau ◽

Crustal Material ◽

The South ◽

Northern Margin ◽

Source Regions ◽

Pan African

AbstractMany previous studies have investigated the late Palaeozoic ophiolites, migmatites and high-pressure metamorphic belts of the Tibetan Plateau, whereas the early Palaeozoic evolution of the regions is relatively poorly understood. Lower Palaeozoic strata, including the Duguer quartz schist, occur in the Himalaya, Lhasa and South Qiangtang terranes of the Tibetan Plateau. In this study, we report the depositional age and sedimentary provenance of the Duguer quartz schist of the central South Qiangtang terrane, which enables us to interpret the tectonic affinity of the terrane. We obtained U–Pb ages, trace-element compositions and Hf isotopic data from zircons from the Duguer quartz schist. A total of 162 U–Pb analyses of detrital zircons from the schist yielded two pronounced age peaks at c. 600 Ma and c. 960 Ma. These results indicate that the provenance of the Duguer quartz schist is India Gondwana or the terranes that share an affinity with India Gondwana in the Tibetan Plateau, which include the South Qiangtang and Himalaya terranes. Detrital zircon crystals show large variations in Hf isotope compositions, with εHf(t), TDM and TDMC values of −52.5 to 13.2, 900–3300 Ma and 1010–4240 Ma, respectively. This suggests that the source area for the Duguer quartz schist included Precambrian rocks and, more specifically, Pan-African and Grenville–Jinning crustal material. During Pan-African and Grenville–Jinning events, crustal recycling and the addition of mantle material occurred in the source regions of the quartz schist, when the South Qiangtang, Lhasa and Himalaya terranes were all part of the northern margin of Gondwana.

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