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Geochronological study of biotite aegirine‐augite syenite in the Bengge area, Western Yunnan: An example of zircon U–Pb dating for alkalic rocks
Author(s) -
Liu Xiao,
Luo Zhaohua,
Wang Yu,
Jiang Xiumin
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
geological journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.721
H-Index - 54
eISSN - 1099-1034
pISSN - 0072-1050
DOI - 10.1002/gj.4080
Subject(s) - zircon , biotite , geology , geochemistry , augite , geochronology , sanidine , pyroxene , aegirine , plateau (mathematics) , olivine , plagioclase , paleontology , mathematical analysis , quartz , mathematics
The Bengge biotite aegirine‐augite syenite (BAS) is located in the southern part of Yidun Arc, eastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau area. It is an integral part of the Bengge ultrapotassic rocks (UPR), an alkalic complex mainly consisting of BAS, biotite pyroxene syenite (BPS), and biotite syenite (BS). Geochronological studies including zircon LA‐ICPMS U–Pb dating and biotite 40 Ar/ 39 Ar dating have been conducted on the Bengge BAS to constrain its emplacement age. The zircon U–Pb dating yields a wide range of ages from 209 ± 2 Ma to 239 ± 2 Ma, with the concordia 206 Pb/ 238 U age being 228 ± 8.9 Ma (MSWD = 0.13). Meanwhile, the biotite 40 Ar/ 39 Ar dating yields a plateau age of 205.7 ± 1.5 Ma. The whole‐rock Zr‐saturation temperature (T zir‐sat ) of the Bengge BAS has shown to be very low (86 ± 13°C to 634 ± 13°C), which is much lower than Ti‐in‐zircon temperature (>758°C) of the zircons used for U–Pb dating. This indicates that the zircons in the Bengge BAS are inherited, and they were already present in the BAS melts before the melts became Zr‐saturated. Similarly, the T zir‐sat of the Bengge BPS and BS are 346 ± 14°C ~ 549 ± 13°C and 281 ± 14°C ~ 525 ± 13°C, respectively, which is also too low for magmatic zircon crystallization in the melts. The inherited zircons of Bengge BAS have typical features of magmatic zircon, with high (Sm/La) N ratios (2.54–819), Ce/Ce* ratios (4.77–304) and low La concentration. Low ε Hf (T) values (−5.0 to 0.42) and high U/Yb (0.67–12.6) values imply that the inherited zircons (209–239 Ma) in the Benge BAS are derived from an early arc‐magma system of the Yidun Arc. The biotite 40 Ar/ 39 Ar dating constrains the Bengge BAS emplacement age at 205.7 ± 1.5 Ma, the time when the arc‐magma activity had ceased, and a regional geodynamic transition in the Yidun Arc from convergence to back‐arc spreading had started.