Crustal velocity structure of Cathaysia Block from an active-source seismic profile between Wanzai and Hui'an in SE China

Abstract

With the purpose of exploring the widely distributed Mesozoic granitoids in SE China and the related mineralization, we carried out a new 530-km-long seismic wide-angle reflection and refraction (WARR) profile along the transect Wanzai- Hui'an. Based on a previous exploration in 2012 and the analysis of this WARR profile, we have deduced a detailed P-wave velocity model of the crust and uppermost mantle. The main results are: (1) The crustal thickness is about 30 to 32 km beneath the Yangtze Block and West Cathaysia, and 29 to 30 km below the East Cathaysia, which represents a significant thinning with respect to the worldwide average thickness of shields and platforms. (2) The variation in seismic velocity between the upper crust and middle-lower crust in the Yangtze Block and the Cathaysia Blocks indicates that the Shaoxing-Jiangshan-Pingxiang Fault (SJPF) is the tectonic boundary between the Yangtze and Cathaysia and the Zhenghe-Dapu Fault (ZDF) is the tectonic boundary between the west and east Cathaysia. (3) The middle crust exhibits a low P-wave velocity layer of 6.2 km/s below the Wuyishan Metallogenic Belt (WMB). This low velocity layer can be attributed to the delamination during the Caledonian orogeny and the Yanshanian extension. (4) The middle-lower crust shows a clear lateral velocity variation from west to east in Cathaysia. The subduction of the Paleo-Pacific plate is believed to be the main reason for the extensional tectonic environment and magmatism during the Yanshanian (Jurassic-Cretaceous) period, leading to significant crustal and lithospheric thinning. Relatively high velocity in the middle-lower crust and widely disseminated Cretaceous volcanic rocks in East Cathaysia may be related to the slab rollback of the Paleo-Pacific plate in the late Yanshanian (Cretaceous) period.