Mesoproterozoic (∼1.4 Ga) magmatism in the Liaoyuan Accretionary Belt, NE China: New implications for tectonic affinity and crustal evolution of microcontinents along the southern Central Asian Orogenic Belt

Abstract The Mesoproterozoic granitic magmatism has been identified in the middle and western part of the southern margin of Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB), but rarely reported from the eastern part. In this study, Mesoproterozoic granitic rocks were identified in the Liaoyuan Accretionary Belt (LAB), an area located in the northeast China, within the eastern part of the southern CAOB. Information obtained from these samples is likely to elucidate the current understanding of the Precambrian evolution in this area. The five granitic rocks yielded zircon U–Pb weighted mean ages between 1321 ± 43 Ma and 1388 ± 31 Ma. These samples are characterized by high SiO2 (69.30–77.51 wt%), MgO (1.96–2.34 wt%), Fe2O3 (3.48–3.82 wt%), and Cr (40–80 ppm) contents, moderate Al2O3 contents (11.23–15.80 wt%), and high Mg# values (45–56). Furthermore, they are rich in light rare earth elements (LREEs), Zr, and Hf, but depleted in heavy rare earth elements (HREEs), Nb, Ta, and Ti. Moreover, they also exhibit significant negative Eu anomalies (Eu/Eu* = 0.25–0.84). In addition, the samples have high Zr + Ce + Y + Nb contents (300–497 ppm) indicating A-type granite affinities. The zircons depicted positive eHf(t) values (3.31 to 11.1, average value of 7.5) with two stage model ages (TDM2) varying from 1480 Ma to 2128 Ma. Based on the above data, it was concluded that the Mesoproterozoic granitic rocks in this area were derived from partial melting of juvenile crust with addition of mantle-derived materials. The granites were emplaced in an extensional setting caused by roll back or break off of subducted oceanic slab. Juvenile ∼ 1.4 Ga granitic rocks, like these in the LAB, were also preserved in other microcontinents along the southern CAOB. Their geochemical characteristics are comparable to rocks derived from contemporaneous igneous activity in Laurentia and Baltica, but not those in the North China, Tarim or the Siberian Cratons. Based on the present and previous studies, the microcontinents that preserved the juvenile ∼ 1.4 Ga rocks might belong to a continental terrane in the periphery of the Columbia supercontinent and show tectonic affinity with the combined Laurentia–Baltica landmass.