Abstract
In convergent zones, several parts of the geodynamic system (e.g., continental margins, back-arc regions) can be deformed, uplifted, and eroded through time, each of them potentially delivering clastic sediments to neighboring basins. Tectonically driven events are mostly recorded in syntectonic clastic systems accumulated into different kinds of basins: trench, fore-arc, and back-arc basins in subduction zones and foredeep, thrust-top, and episutural basins in collisional settings. The most widely used tools for provenance analysis of synorogenic sediments and for unraveling the tectonic evolution of convergent zones are sandstone petrography and U–Pb dating of detrital zircon. In this paper, we present a comparison of previously published data discussing how these techniques are used to constrain provenance reconstructions and contribute to a better understanding of the tectonic evolution of (i) the Cretaceous transition from extensional to compressional regimes in the back-arc region of the southern Andean system; and (ii) the involvement of the passive European continental margin in the Western Alps subduction system during impending Alpine collision. In both cases, sediments delivered from the down-bending continental block are significantly involved. Our findings highlight its role as a detrital source, which is generally underestimated or even ignored in current tectonic models.
Highlights
Detrital petrology studies of sedimentary basin fill can yield insights into the tectonics that govern compressional settings
Convergent zones are characterized by tectonically active regions affected by exhumation, uplift, and erosion and are surrounded by synorogenic basins accommodating clastic sediments produced in these zones [1,2]
U–Pb dating of detrital zircon grains has become a relatively standard approach for provenance study of clastic systems due to (i) the commonness of zircon crystals in parent rocks, and its resistance to diagenesis results in the relative abundance of zircon grains in clastic sedimentary rocks [21]; and (ii) its relatively low cost, allowing the collection of a statistically significant number of data necessary for its application to clastic systems
Summary
Detrital petrology studies of sedimentary basin fill can yield insights into the tectonics that govern compressional settings. Convergent zones are characterized by tectonically active regions affected by exhumation, uplift, and erosion and are surrounded by synorogenic basins accommodating clastic sediments produced in these zones [1,2]. This leads to complex source-to-sink systems where a relatively continuous transfer of rock mass tries to keep the system in equilibrium (i.e., growing relief vs erosion) [3,4]. Orogenic prisms are generally thought to be the main (if not the unique) source for detrital sediments in convergent zones, other parts of geodynamic systems can be involved when exhumated [5,6]. The tectonic evolution of those source-to-sink systems is studied by the provenance analysis of clastic
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