Evidence of Eoarchean crust beneath the Yakutian kimberlite province in the Siberian craton

Abstract

The Siberian craton is one of the largest Precambrian cratons in the world. However, unlike other cratons, the Siberian craton can only provide a relatively limited amount of geochronological data since a large part of it is covered by younger sedimentary deposits. Xenoliths from numerous kimberlite and lamprophyre pipes and alkali basalts allow us to investigate the composition and evolution of the Siberian Craton crust. The available isotopic and geochemical data show that the crust of the Anabar tectonic province of the Siberian craton is not age stratified, and consists of variably reworked Paleoarchean rocks and juvenile Proterozoic rocks at all crustal levels. Hence, a detailed geochronological study of crustal xenoliths (mainly zircon U-Pb age and Hf isotopic composition) in the kimberlite pipes of the Yakutian kimberlite province is required. In this study, we present U-Pb ages and Hf isotope data of zircons derived from crustal xenoliths in the Zarnitsa (Daldyn kimberlite field) and the Nyurbinskaya (Nakyn kimberlite field) kimberlite pipes. The obtained data provided grounds for identifying four main tectono-thermal events during the evolution of the Archean crust in the Anabar tectonic province of the Siberian craton. The first event at 3.2 Ga denotes the beginning of zircon crystallisation. These zircons are eventually recrystallised during the second event at 2.9 Ga, and radiogenic Hf (formed from 176Lu decay in the host rock) was introduced into the system. The third event at 2.8–2.7 Ga featured further recrystallisation of zircons and the incorporation of additional radiogenic 176Hf. The minor addition of radiogenic Hf during the final event at 1.9 Ga indicates a relatively large range for the initial 176Hf/177Hf ratio. Our data indicate that Eoarchean or even Hadean crust, which were reworked in the Paleoproterozoic, may be present beneath the Daldyn and Nakyn kimberlite fields. Zircon grains with low 176Hf/177Hf (0.28047–0.280661) were found in the xenoliths of the mafic garnet granulite (Zar-1–02) and garnet biotite gneisses (Nrb-13 and Nrb-65).