Early Cretaceous bimodal volcanism in the Duolong Cu mining district, western Tibet: Record of slab breakoff that triggered ca. 108–113 Ma magmatism in the western Qiangtang terrane

Abstract

We report new zircon U–Pb ages and Hf isotope compositions, and whole-rock major and trace element and Sr–Nd isotope data for the Meiriqiecuo Formation (MF) bimodal volcanic rocks collected from the Duolong Cu mining district (DCMD) in the western Qiangtang terrane (QT), western Tibet. These data provide important constraints on the petrogenetic evolution and geodynamic setting of Early Cretaceous magmatism in the DCMD. The MF bimodal volcanic rocks are mainly basaltic andesite and andesite, with subordinate rhyolite. Four mafic samples yielded zircon U–Pb ages of ca. 108.2–113.0Ma, and one silicic sample has an age of 109.3±2.2Ma, indicating that the mafic and silicic eruptions were contemporaneous. The MF bimodal volcanic rocks belong to the medium-K calc-alkaline to shoshonite series. The rocks show arc-type affinities characterized by significant enrichment in light rare earth (LaN/YbN=7.74–12.60) and large-ion lithophile elements (Rb, Cs, K, and Pb), but depletions in the high-field-strength elements (Nb, Ta, and Ti), which geochemically resemble Andean arc basalts. Therefore, the MF bimodal volcanic rocks were likely emplaced at an Andean-type active continental margin and represent an Early Cretaceous magmatic arc that was located at the western QT margin. Moreover, the mafic volcanic rocks have high initial Sr isotopic ratios (0.705269–0.705413) and negative εNd(t) values of −1.5 to −0.6 compared with the silicic volcanic rocks ((87Sr/86Sr)i=0.704770–0.704903; εNd(t)=+1.2 to +1.3). Zircons from silicic samples have significantly higher εHf(t) values (+11.6 to +15.5) and predominantly lower Paleoproterozoic Hf crustal model ages (TDMC=180–428Ma) than the mafic samples, which have variable εHf(t) values of +3.4 to +13.0 and TDMC ages of 346–952Ma. These results indicate that the mafic and silicic end-members of the MF bimodal suite were generated from mantle and crustal sources, respectively. The basaltic andesite and andesite may have been derived from mantle enriched by the metasomatism of subducted fluids, whereas the rhyolite could have been derived by partial melting of mafic juvenile crust that originated from an older and more depleted mantle. In light of the geochemical characteristics and field relationships, we propose that breakoff of the Bangong–Nujiang oceanic lithosphere was responsible for the generation and emplacement of the MF bimodal volcanic rocks. The fact that the MF bimodal volcanic arc magmatism was active at ca. 108–113Ma indicates that it was associated with closure of the Bangong–Nujiang Ocean via an arc-arc “soft” collision during the Early Cretaceous.