Late Paleozoic rift-related basalts from central Inner Mongolia, China. (15th August 2017) - Zhu, Wenping
Highlights: The ca. 315 Ma basalts from the Eastern CAOB are similar to forearc basalts. They were generated by melting of a fluxed DM source in an extensional environment. Hf–O isotopes suggest increasing involvement of an enriched mantle source. It was in a Late Paleozoic a rift-related tectonic setting in the Eastern CAOB. Abstract: Late Paleozoic basaltic volcanism widely occurred in central Inner Mongolia, the southeastern part of the Central Asia Orogenic Blet (CAOB). Three volcanic pulses are identified by ion microprobe (SHRIMP II) zircon U-Pb analysis, which are Late Carboniferous (ca. 315 Ma), the latest Carboniferous (ca. 303 Ma) and early Permian (ca. 284 Ma). Basalts in the earliest stage are characterized by flat HREE, depletion in Nb and Ta, MORB-like Th/Yb ratios and depleted mantle (DM)-like Hf isotopic ratios. These are similar to forearc basalts, that have been generated by melting of a fluxed depleted mantle in an extensional environment. The latest Carboniferous basalts (sample D1363) have no Zr-Hf anomalies, relatively radiogenic Hf isotopic ratios (εHf(t) = +12.1 to +19.7) and high δ 18 O values up to 8.5‰, VSMOW. These are likely to be magmas originated from decompressional melting of a depleted mantle that interacted with ocean floor pillow basalts during their ascending through the crust. The early Permian sample D1380 have variable 206 Pb/ 238 U zircon ages with an interpreted magma crystallization age of 284.4 ± 2.5 Ma. These zircons have scattered Hf isotope (εHf(t) = +5 to +14) and δ 18 O (1.8–11.0‰, VSMOW), which suggest the involvement of a relatively enriched mantle source. Overall the temporal evolution of the Late Paleozoic basaltic volcanism from central Inner Mongolia suggests a rift-related tectonic setting.