scholarly journals Detrital Zircon Geochronology Across the Chopawamsic Fault, Western Piedmont of North-Central Virginia: Implications for the Main Iapetan Suture in the Southern Appalachian Orogen

2014 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 503 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Stephen Hughes ◽  
James P. Hibbard ◽  
Jeffrey C. Pollock ◽  
David J. Lewis ◽  
Brent V. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Detrital Zircon ◽  
Volcanic Rocks ◽  
Detrital Zircons ◽  
Fault System ◽  
North Central ◽  
Middle Ordovician ◽  
Metasedimentary Rocks ◽  
Southern Appalachian ◽  
Icp Ms ◽  
Appalachian Orogen

The Chopawamsic fault potentially represents the main Iapetan suture, previously unidentified in the southern extent of the Appalachian orogen.  The fault trends through the north-central portion of the western Piedmont of Virginia and separates the composite metaclastic Potomac terrane, commonly interpreted to be of Laurentian affinity, from the Chopawamsic terrane, the remains of a Middle Ordovician volcanic arc of uncertain crustal affinity.  To gain insight on the first-order orogenic significance of the Chopawamsic fault, we report the results of LA–ICP–MS U–Pb analyses of 1,289 detrital zircons from 13 metasedimentary rock samples collected from both sides of the fault.       The near exclusivity of Middle Ordovician zircon grains (ca. 470 – 460 Ma) in four sampled metasedimentary rocks of the Chopawamsic Formation likely represents the detrital recycling of syndepositional Chopawamsic volcanic rocks.  A subset of Cambrian and older grains hint at one or more additional, older sources.       Samples from the Potomac terrane include mostly Mesoproterozoic zircon grains and these results are consistent with previous interpretations that the metaclastic rocks are Laurentian-derived.  The youngest zircons (ca. 550 – 500 Ma) and the age of cross-cutting plutons indicate that at least some parts of the Potomac terrane are Late Cambrian – Early Ordovician.  The results imply temporally discrete and geographically isolated sedimentary systems during deposition of sedimentary rocks in the Chopawamsic and Potomac terranes.       Metasedimentary rocks near Storck, Virginia, previously identified as a successor basin, contain detrital zircon populations that indicate they are actually peri-Gondwanan derived metasedimentary rocks unrelated to a successor basin system; their geographic position between the Laurentian-derived Potomac terrane and the Chopawamsic terrane suggests a peri-Gondwanan affinity for the Chopawamsic arc and geographic separation of the Chopawamsic and Potomac terranes in the Middle Ordovician. Consequently, we tentatively support the hypothesis that the Chopawamsic fault system represents the main Iapetan suture in the southern Appalachian orogen.      Most detrital zircons from samples of the Arvonia successor basin crystallized in the Ordovician—Silurian or Mesoproterozoic.  These data suggest that the Arvonia basin was deposited in the latest Ordovician to Early Silurian only after the Late Ordovician accretion of the Chopawamsic arc to Laurentia.  SOMMAIRELa faille de Chopawamsic représente peut-être la principale suture japétienne, non-reconnue dans prolongement sud de l’orogène des Appalaches.  La faille traverse la portion nord du centre du piedmont ouest de Virginie et sépare le terrane métaclastique de Potomac, d’affinité laurentienne pensait-on, du terrane de Chopawamsic, vestige d’un arc volcanique de l’Ordovicien moyen d’affinité crustale incertain.  Afin de mettre en lumière la signification orogénique première de la faille de Chopawamsic, nous présentons les résultats d’analyses U-Pb par ICP–MS par AL sur 1 289 zircons détritiques provenant de 13 échantillons de roches métasédimentaires prélevés de chaque côté de la faille.     L’existence quasi-exclusive de grains de zircon de l’Ordovicien moyen (env. 470 – 460 Ma) dans quatre roches métasédimentaires de la Formation de Chopawamsic représente vraisemblablement le recyclage détritique des roches volcaniques synsédimentaires de Chopawamsic.  Un sous-ensemble de grains cambriens et plus anciens, évoque l’existence d’une ou plusieurs sources plus anciennes additionnelles.     Les échantillons du terrane de Potomac renferment principalement des grains de zircon du Mésoprotérozoïque, ce qui correspond avec les interprétations antérieures voulant que les roches métaclastiques soient d’origine laurentienne.  Les zircons les plus jeunes (env. 550 – 500 Ma) ainsi que l’âge des plutons qui recoupe l’encaissant indiquent qu’au moins certaines parties du terrane de Potomac sont de la fin du Cambrien ou du début de l’Ordovicien.  Les résultats impliquent l’existence de systèmes sédimentaires distincts au cours du temps, et isolés géographiquement durant le dépôt des roches sédimentaires dans les terranes de Chopawamsic et de Potomac.     Les roches métasédimentaires près de Storck en Virginie, jadis interprétées comme bassin successeur, renferment des populations de zircons détritiques qui indiquent qu’ils proviennent en fait de roches métasédimentaires péri-gondwaniennes sans rapport avec un système de bassin successeur; leur localisation géographique entre le terrane de Potomac issu des Laurentides et le terrane de Chopawamsic porte à penser que l’arc de Chopawamsic est d’affinité péri-gondwanienne, et que les terranes de Chopawamsic et de Potomac à l’Ordovicien moyen étaient séparés géographiquement.   En conséquence il nous semble justifié de proposer que le système de faille de Chopawamsic représente la principale suture japétienne dans le sud de l’orogène des Appalaches.     La plupart des zircons détritiques des échantillons du bassin successeur d’Arvonia ont cristallisés entre l’Ordovicien et le Silurien ou au Mésoprotérozoïque.  Ces données suggèrent que le bassin d’Arvonia s’est rempli de la fin entre l’Ordovicien et le début du Silurien, seulement après l’accrétion de l’arc de Chopawamsic à la Laurentie, à la fin de l’Ordovicien.

Detrital Zircon Geochronology of Pennsylvanian-Permian Strata in Colorado: Evidence for Appalachian-Derived Sediment and Implications for the Timing of Ancestral Rocky Mountains Uplift

2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (3) ◽  
pp. 119-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kajal Nair ◽  
John Singleton ◽  
Christopher Holm-Denoma ◽  
Sven Egenhoff
Keyword(s):  
Detrital Zircon ◽  
Detrital Zircons ◽  
Sediment Provenance ◽  
Front Range ◽  
Sediment Sources ◽  
Dispersal Patterns ◽  
North Central ◽  
Zircon Age ◽  
Detrital Zircon Geochronology ◽  
Appalachian Orogen

Pennsylvanian-Permian time in north-central Colorado corresponds with uplift of the Ancestral Front Range and deposition of the Fountain, Ingleside, and Lyons Formations along its flanks. In southwestern Colorado, deposition of the Molas and Hermosa Formations along the flanks of the Uncompahgre Highlands largely represents Pennsylvanian time. We present new detrital zircon U-Pb geochronology data for the Ingleside and Lyons Formations in north-central Colorado and the Molas and Hermosa Formations in southwestern Colorado to understand sediment provenance and dispersal patterns. We determined U-Pb ages using LA-ICPMS on 120-150 zircon grains from five sandstone samples collected from shallow marine and eolian facies within the Ingleside, Lyons, Molas, and Hermosa Formations. All sandstone samples display a mixed Laurentian derivation, with age populations that record local and distal sediment sources. All samples also contain between 5% and 10% concordant Paleozoic-age zircon grains ranging from 330–490 Ma, coinciding with high magmatic flux during the Taconic and Acadian orogenies in the Appalachian orogen. Ultimate derivation from the Appalachians are also interpreted for zircon age populations ranging from 500-750 Ma and 1000-1300 Ma that likely originated from Pan-African and Grenville terranes respectively. This study detects the earliest documented appearance of Paleozoic zircons along the northern Ancestral Front Range, corresponding to deposition of the lower Ingleside Formation. We compare our data along the Front Range to previous detrital zircon studies from the underlying Fountain Formation to conclude that the Fountain-Ingleside transition was accompanied by a decrease in locally sourced detrital zircons, most likely marking the cessation of Ancestral Front Range uplift. Conversely, deposition across the Molas-Hermosa contact in southwestern Colorado was accompanied by an increase in locally-sourced detrital zircon grains, most likely marking the initiation of the Uncompahgre uplift.

Detrital zircon geochronology of metasedimentary rocks in the southern Omineca Belt, Canadian Cordillera

1991 ◽  
Vol 28 (8) ◽  
pp. 1254-1270 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerald M. Ross ◽  
Randall R. Parrish
Keyword(s):  
Detrital Zircon ◽  
Bimodal Distribution ◽  
Detrital Zircons ◽  
Detrital Zircon Geochronology ◽  
Early Proterozoic ◽  
Metasedimentary Rocks ◽  
Basement Rocks ◽  
Two Samples ◽  
Alberta Basin ◽  
Detrital Zircon Ages

We address two problems of Cordilleran geology in this study using U–Pb dating of single detrital zircon grains from metasedimentary rocks: the provenance of the Windermere Supergroup, and the age and correlation of metasedimentary rocks within the Shuswap Complex that are at high metamorphic grade. Because some of these rocks are clearly of North American affinity, the ages of zircons provide indirect constraints on the age and distribution of continental basement from which the zircons were derived.A consistent pattern emerges from ages of about 50 grains from six rocks. Nearly all samples analyzed (48–53°N) are characterized by a bimodal distribution of zircon ages of 1.65–2.16 Ga and > 2.5 Ga, with a distinct lack of ages between 2.1 and 2.5 Ga. Exceptions to this pattern are young zircons from two samples, from Valhalla and Grand Forks – Kettle complexes of southeastern British Columbia, that have grains 1435 ± 35 and 650 ± 15 Ma, respectively. These younger grains are inferred to have been derived from magmatic rocks, and they have no obvious source in either the Canadian Shield or the Alberta subsurface basement to the east. The Early Proterozoic and Archean ages of detrital zircons resemble those of dated basement rocks beneath the Alberta Basin as well as basement exposed within the Cordilleran hinterland (gneisses of Thor–Odin, Frenchman Cap, and Malton regions). However, 2.1–2.4 Ga rocks that are extensive in the subsurface of northern Alberta are not represented in the inventory of detrital zircon ages presented in this paper.This pattern suggests that much of the Cordilleran basement between these latitudes is underlain by Archean crust of the Hearne–Wyoming provinces that may be mantled to the west by an orogenic–magmatic belt of Early Proterozoic (1.7–1.9 Ga) age which may largely have been parallel to the present Cordilleran orogen.

scholarly journals Recycling of Paleoproterozoic and Neoproterozoic crust recorded in Lower Paleozoic metasandstones of the Northern Gemericum (Western Carpathians, Slovakia): Evidence from detrital zircons

2019 ◽  
Vol 70 (4) ◽  
pp. 298-310
Author(s):  
Anna Vozárová ◽  
Nickolay Rodionov ◽  
Katarína Šarinová
Keyword(s):  
Detrital Zircon ◽  
Detrital Zircons ◽  
Western Carpathians ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Lower Paleozoic ◽  
Metasedimentary Rocks ◽  
Late Neoproterozoic ◽  
Central Western Carpathians ◽  
A Minor ◽  
Detrital Zircon Ages

Abstract U–Pb (SHRIMP) detrital zircon ages from the Early Paleozoic meta-sedimentary rocks of the Northern Gemericum Unit (the Smrečinka Formation) were used to characterize their provenance. The aim was to compare and reconcile new analyses with previously published data. The detrital zircon age spectrum demonstrates two prominent populations, the first, Late Neoproterozoic (545–640 Ma) and the second, Paleoproterozoic (1.8–2.1 Ga), with a minor Archean population (2.5–3.4 Ga). The documented zircon ages reflect derivation of the studied metasedimentary rocks from the Cadomian arc, which was located along the West African Craton. The acquired data supports close relations of the Northern Gemericum basement with the Armorican terranes during Neoproterozoic and Ordovician times and also a close palinspastic relation with the other crystalline basements of the Central Western Carpathians. In comparison, the detrital zircons from the Southern Gemericum basement and its Permian envelope indicate derivation from the Pan-African Belt–Saharan Metacraton provenance.

scholarly journals Age and sources of the metasedimrntary rocks of the Tokur terrane in the Mongol-Okhotsk fold belt: results of the U–Pb geoсhronological and Lu–Hf isotope studies

2019 ◽  
Vol 486 (4) ◽  
pp. 446-450
Author(s):  
V. A. Zaika ◽  
A. A. Sorokin ◽  
A. P. Sorokin
Keyword(s):  
Detrital Zircons ◽  
Hf Isotope ◽  
Fold Belt ◽  
Metasedimentary Rocks ◽  
The North ◽  
Icp Ms ◽  
North Asia ◽  
Southeastern Margin ◽  
Isotope Studies ◽  
Metamorphic Complexes

This paper presents the results of U–Pb (LA–ICP–MS) and Lu–Hf ­isotope studies of detrital zircons from metasedimentary rocks of the Tokur Terrane. It has been shown that metasedimentary rocks of the Tokur and Ekimchan formations are characterized by similar age peaks of detrital zircons, which indicates a close (or same) age of these formations. The lower age of the sedimentation is determined by the age of the youngest zircons of 326–323 Ma. The upper age boundary is determined of 254–251 Ma, based on the intruded of the Late Permian granitoids. The main sources of zircons in the metasedimentary rocks of the Tokur Terrane are the igneous and metamorphic complexes of the southeast framing of the North Asia Craton. The Tokur Terrane can be considered as a fragment of the Paleozoic accretionary complex, the formation in front of the southeastern margin of the North Asia Craton.

Sm–Nd isotopic geochemistry of Precambrian to Paleozoic granitoid suites and the deep-crustal structure of the southeast margin of the Newfoundland Appalachians

1995 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 224-245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Kerr ◽  
George A. Jenner ◽  
Brian J. Fryer
Keyword(s):  
Fault System ◽  
Mobile Belt ◽  
Simple Extension ◽  
Precambrian Basement ◽  
Zone Boundary ◽  
First Order ◽  
Metasedimentary Rocks ◽  
Late Precambrian ◽  
Deep Crustal Structure ◽  
Appalachian Orogen

In the Eastern Central Mobile Belt of the Newfoundland Appalachians, late Precambrian basement inliers have εNd from −3 to +2, but Cambro-Ordovician metasedimentary rocks have initial εNd below −7. This region is inferred to have an "inverted" crustal residence structure, which influenced subsequent Appalachian-cycle magmatism. Ordovician and Silurian granitoid suites have εNd of −8 to −2, bracketing both basement and cover, but peraluminous, "S-type" granites have the lowest εNd. Devonian granites have initial εNd values from −5 to +1, and low εNd is associated with peraluminous character. These Paleozoic granites show geographic trends, with lowest εNd values in areas where metasedimentary rocks are abundant. They are suggested to contain anatectic material from both Precambrian basement and metasedimentary cover, but some "I-type" suites probably also include a mantle-derived component. In the adjacent Avalon Zone, Precambrian plutonic suites mostly have εNd from +1 to +6, but there are negative εNd values (−8 to −4) in the westernmost Avalon Zone. Devonian plutonic suites mostly have εNd from +2 to +5. Thus, the Precambrian crust of the Avalon Zone is largely "juvenile," except at its westernmost edge. Contrasts across the Eastern Central Mobile Belt–Avalon Zone boundary, defined by the Dover–Hermitage Bay fault system, indicate a major, crustal-scale structure, and suggest an isotopically distinct "central block" beneath the central Appalachian Orogen, rather than a simple extension of "Avalonian" crust. Similar geographic–isotopic patterns have been reported in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, suggesting that this pattern represents a first-order deep-crustal subdivision of the northern Appalachian Orogen.

Autochthonous and allochthonous rocks in the Pistolet Bay area in northernmost Newfoundland

1968 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 501-513 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. F. Tuke
Keyword(s):  
Lower Cambrian ◽  
Volcanic Rocks ◽  
The Other ◽  
North Central ◽  
Middle Ordovician ◽  
Early Ordovician ◽  
Bay Area

Rocks outcropping in the northernmost part of the island of Newfoundland belong to two sequences, which are partly contemporaneous and very different in lithology. One sequence consists of Lower Cambrian sandstones and Lower and Middle Ordovician carbonates and shales. The other sequence consists of graywackes, volcanic rocks, and ultrabasic intrusions, which are, in part, early Ordovician. This latter sequence is interpreted as allochthonous because it is underlain by major low-angle faults and because of its strong facies contrast with the first sequence. The allochthonous rocks occur in three separate klippen.The trend of slickensides, attitude of folds, and deflection of beds at fault surfaces all indicate that movement along the low-angle faults that underlie the klippen was to the northwest. The klippen probably originated from an area 60 km to the southeast, which is on strike with similar rocks in north-central Newfoundland.It is suggested that the klippen moved by gravity sliding in late Middle Ordovician time.

scholarly journals Zircon geochronology from the Kangaatsiaq– Qasigiannguit region, the northern part of the 1.9–1.8 Ga Nagssugtoqidian orogen, West Greenland

2006 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. 87-100 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristine Thrane ◽  
James N. Connelly
Keyword(s):  
Detrital Zircons ◽  
Zircon Geochronology ◽  
West Greenland ◽  
Metasedimentary Rocks ◽  
The North ◽  
Ion Probe ◽  
Icp Ms ◽  
Supracrustal Belt ◽  
Granitoid Rocks ◽  
Age Patterns

The Kangaatsiaq–Qasigiannguit region in the northern part of the Palaeoproterozoic Nagssugtoqidian orogen of West Greenland consists of poly-deformed orthogneisses and minor occurrences of interleaved, discontinuous supracrustal belts. Laser ablation ICP-MS 207Pb/206Pb analyses of detrital zircons from four metasedimentary rocks (supplemented by ion probe analysis of one sample) and igneous zircons from six granitoid rocks cutting metasedimentary units indicate that the supracrustal rocks in the Kangaatsiaq–Qasigiannguit (Christianshåb) region are predominantly Archaean in age. Four occurrences of metasedimentary rocks are clearly Archaean, two have equivocal ages, and only one metasedimentary unit, from within the Naternaq (Lersletten) supracrustal belt, is demonstrably Palaeoproterozoic and readily defines a large fold complex of this age at Naternaq. The 2.9–2.8 Ga ages of detrital Archaean grains are compatible with derivation from the local basement orthogneisses within the Nagssugtoqidian orogen. The detrital age patterns are similar to those of metasediments within the central Nagssugtoqidian orogen but distinct from age patterns in metasediments of the Rinkian belt to the north, where there is an additional component of pre-2.9 Ga zircons. Synkinematic intrusive granitoid rocks constrain the ages of some Archaean deformation at 2748 ± 19 Ma and some Palaeoproterozoic deformation at 1837 ± 12 Ma.

Determining the provenance of Triassic sedimentary rocks in northeastern British Columbia and western Alberta using detrital zircon geochronology, with implications for regional tectonics

2016 ◽  
Vol 53 (2) ◽  
pp. 140-155 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.L. Golding ◽  
J.K. Mortensen ◽  
F. Ferri ◽  
J.-P. Zonneveld ◽  
M.J. Orchard
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
North America ◽  
Detrital Zircon ◽  
Age Distribution ◽  
Volcanic Rocks ◽  
Significant Proportion ◽  
Foreland Basin ◽  
Detrital Zircons ◽  
Passive Margin ◽  
The Arctic

Triassic rocks of the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin (WCSB) have previously been interpreted as being deposited on the passive margin of North America. Recent detrital zircon provenance studies on equivalent Triassic rocks in the Yukon have suggested that these rocks were in part derived from the pericratonic Yukon–Tanana terrane and were deposited in a foreland basin related to the Late Permian Klondike orogeny. Detrital zircons within a number of samples collected from Triassic sediments of the WCSB throughout northeastern British Columbia and western Alberta suggest that the bulk of the sediment was derived from recycled sediments of the miogeocline along western North America, with a smaller but significant proportion coming from the Innuitian orogenic wedge in the Arctic and from local plutonic and volcanic rocks. There is also evidence of sediment being derived from the Yukon–Tanana terrane, supporting the model of terrane accretion occurring prior to the Triassic. The age distribution of detrital zircons from the WCSB in British Columbia is similar to those of the Selwyn and Earn sub-basins in the Yukon and is in agreement with previous observations that sediment deposited along the margin of North America during the Triassic was derived from similar source areas. Together these findings support the model of deposition within a foreland basin, similar to the one inferred in the Yukon. Only a small proportion of zircon derived from the Yukon–Tanana terrane is present within Triassic strata in northeastern British Columbia, which may be due to post-Triassic erosion of the rocks containing these zircons.

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