The formation and rejuvenation of continental crust in the central North China Craton: Evidence from zircon U–Pb geochronology and Hf isotope

Abstract

The Trans-North China Orogen (TNCO) along the central part of the North China Craton (NCC) is considered as a Paleoproterozoic suture along which the Eastern and Western Blocks of the NCC were amalgamated. Here we investigate the Precambrian crustal evolution history in the Fuping segment of the TNCO and the subsequent reactivation associated with extensive craton destruction during Mesozoic. We present zircon LA-ICP-MS U–Pb and Lu–Hf data on TTG (tonalite–trondhjemite–granodiorite) gneiss, felsic orthogneiss, amphibolite and granite from the Paleoproterozoic suite which show magmatic ages in the range of 2450–1900Ma suggesting a long-lived convergent margin. The εHf(t) values of these zircons range from −11.9 to 12 and their model ages suggest magma derivation from both juvenile components and reworked Archean crust. The Mesozoic magmatic units in the Fuping area includes granite, diorite and mafic microgranular enclaves, the zircons from which define a tight range of 120–130Ma ages suggesting a prominent Early Cretaceous magmatic event. However, the εHf(t) values of these zircons show wide a range from −30.3 to 0.2, indicating that the magmatic activity involved extensive rejuvenation of the older continental crust.