The evolution of volcanism in the Tugnui-Khilok sector of the western Transbaikalia rift area in the Late Mesozoic and Cenozoic

Abstract

The Late Mesozoic-Cenozoic volcanism of the Tugnui-Khilok sector in the western Transbaikalia rift area is related to the development of the Tugnui, Tsolgin, Margentui, and Khilok grabens and is characterized by a north-south migration of magmatic centers. In these grabens, the igneous associations are composed of high-alkaline rocks: alkaline and subalkaline basalts, tephrites, phonolites, trachytes, trachyrhyolites, comendites and pantellerites, alkaline syenites and alkaline gabbroids. These associations are known to have formed during 10 stages: Late Jurassic (150–158 Ma), Late Jurassic-Early Cretaceous (139–147 Ma), the beginning of the Early Cretaceous (133–145 Ma), mid-Early Cretaceous (115–134Ma), the end of the Early Cretaceous (104–114 Ma), the end of the Early-beginning of Late Cretaceous (99–102 Ma), Late Cretaceous (72–90 Ma), Eocene (38–48 Ma), Early Oligocene (30–35 Ma), and Late Oligocene (25–27 Ma). The composition of igneous associations was changing in such a way that the relative amount of salic rocks gradually decreased (occasionally even disappeared completely) in the later developmental stages. As well, the content of SiO2 in basic rocks also decreased with increasing Nb and Ta contents, and depletion occurred in the lithophylic elements Rb, K, Ba, Sr, and in light rare-earths relative to heavy ones. The geochemical and isotope-geochemical parameters of basaltoids change through time, probably due to successive changes in the mantle sources of magmatism. During Mesozoic time, the source composition was consistent, with OIB-EM-II sources enriched in radiogenic strontium, but since the second half of the Cretaceous, the isotope composition began to be modified toward moderately depleted sources of the OIB-PREMA type.