Earth Science Frontiers ›› 2022, Vol. 29 ›› Issue (6): 314-324.DOI: 10.13745/j.esf.sf.2022.8.10

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Late Triassic diabase in the southwestern Ordos Block: Chronology, geochemistry and structural significance

LUO Jinhai(), CHANG Yinglei, CHEN Zhuo   

  1. State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Department of Geology, Northwest University, Xi'an 710069, China
  • Received:2022-07-07 Revised:2022-07-27 Online:2022-11-25 Published:2022-10-20

Abstract:

A few of diabasic dikes intrude into limestone of the Middle Ordovician Majiagou Formation, Leijiagou Village, southwestern Ordos Basin. The diabase is enriched in HFSE (Nb, Ta, Ti, Zr, Hf, etc.) and geochemically similar to intraplate tholeiite, while geochemical evidence indicates the primitive magma experienced relatively strong crystallization differentiation. Zircon U-Pb dating by LA-ICP-MS yielded 206Pb/238U ages of 750-195 Ma for the diabase. According to the peak age combined with regional geological data, the formation age of the diabase is determined to be 224 Ma (Late Triassic). The diabase suggests an extensional structural setting like continental rift existed in the southwestern Ordos Block in the Late Triassic, while strong post-collisional extension of its western part probably strengthened the extensional structural setting. And relatively weak lithospheric stability—implied by the Late Triassic diabase—perhaps provided material basis for the subsequent igneous activities of the Early Jurassic-Early Cretaceous in the southwestern Ordos Block. The igneous activities of the Late Triassic and beyond increased the regional geothermal gradient and thermal evolution of hydrocarbon source rocks, potentially affecting the reservoir-forming environment of the southwestern Ordos Block.

Key words: southwestern Ordos Block, Late Triassic, diabase, intraplate tholeiite, extension

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