Paleoproterozoic crustal evolution of the Tarim Craton, NW China: Constraints from geochronology and geochemistry of orthogneisses and granitic veins in the Xingdi region of the Quruqtagh Block

The Archean-Paleoproterozoic basement rocks, exposed in the Xingdi region of the Quruqtagh Block, provide a great opportunity to characterize the early crustal evolution of the Tarim Craton and reconstruct the Columbia supercontinent. Here we report zircon U-Pb ages, Lu-Hf isotope compositions, and bulk-rock geochemical data of orthogneisses and granitic veins from the Xingdi region of the Quruqtagh Block in the northeastern margin of the Tarim Craton. The orthogneisses formed in the late Neoarchean to early Paleoproterozoic (2504 +/- 33 Ma, 2419 +/- 24 Ma and 2450 +/- 27 Ma), and were metamorphosed in the late Paleoproterozoic (1789 +/- 43 Ma and 1748 +/- 35 Ma). The orthogneisses have relatively high Sr (312-710 ppm) contents, and low Y (5.3-13.8 ppm) and Yb (0.46-1.10 ppm) contents, resulting in high Sr/Y (32-118) and La/Yb (17-64) ratios that are characteristics of adakites. The relatively high Mg-# (49-55) and depleted zircon Hf isotope characteristics (positive epsilon Hf(t), with T-DM2 of ca. 2.5-2.8 Ga) indicate that the orthogneisses crystallized from partial melting of garnet-bearing amphibolite in a subduction environment. The granitic veins that intrude the orthogneisses formed during the late Paleoproterozoic (1760 +/- 25 Ma), which is roughly contemporaneous with the metamorphic ages of the orthogneisses; the granitic veins are characterized by extremely high SiO2 (>80 %), enrichments in Rb, Ba and U, and depletions in Nb and Ta. It is inferred that the granitic veins formed by in situ anatexis of the orthogneisses during the late Paleoproterozoic. Based on the zircon ages with Hf isotope compositions, it is evident that the continental crust in the Xingdi region of the Tarim Craton largely formed between 2.5 and 2.8 Ga and was reworked at ca. 1.8 Ga; this evolutionary history is similar to that of the Dunhuang Block. Comparison of the Paleoproterozoic tectono-thermal events in the different terranes of the Tarim Craton, it is suggested that the Tarim Craton is composed of discrete terranes that detached from different ancient cratonic nuclei prior to the late Paleoproterozoic, and assembled within the Columbia supercontinent respectively.

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This study investigates the characteristics and evolutionary history of the Archean-Paleoproterozoic basement rocks in the Xingdi region of the Quruqtagh Block in the Tarim Craton. The results show that these basement rocks formed during the late Neoarchean to early Paleoproterozoic and underwent metamorphism in the late Paleoproterozoic. Additionally, the formation of granitic veins is roughly contemporaneous with the metamorphic ages of the basement rocks. Based on the analysis of zircon ages and isotope compositions, it is inferred that the continental crust in the Xingdi region largely formed between 2.5 and 2.8 Ga and was reworked at ca. 1.8 Ga. Furthermore, the Tarim Craton is composed of separate terranes that detached from different ancient cratonic nuclei before the late Paleoproterozoic, and then assembled within the Columbia supercontinent.