Chronological record of the Early Mesozoic underplating in the northern margin of North China─U-Pb chronometry of zircons in the Late Mesozoic andesite from Western Liaoning

Cathodoluminescence spectroscopic analysis of zircons in the uppermost sanukites of the early Cretaceous Yixian Formation in Western Liaoning reveals zoning structures of the zircons in the volcanic rocks. LA-ICP-MS chronometry shows that the central part of the zircons is remnant zircon with a U-Pb dating of 254 Ma, which is consistent with the age of the Early Mesozoic underplating granulites, and that the periphery is zircon crystallizing out of the host magma with a U-Pb dating of 116 Ma, which is highly consistent with the Ar-Ar dating of the host volcanic rocks. Compositions of the clinopyroxenes xenocrystals in the sanukites are similar to those of the clinopyroxenes in the underplating granulites, indicating that the granulites accreted to the lower crust in the Early Mesozoic have been reformed and disrupted by the upwelling diapers of the asthenosphere and taken part in formation of the sanukites in the Late Mesozoic.     

Chronological record of the Early Mesozoic underplating in the northern margin of North China—U-Pb chronometry of zircons in the Late Mesozoic andesite from Western Liaoning

Cathodoluminescence spectroscopic analysis of zircons in the uppermost sanukites of the early Cretaceous Yixian Forma- tion in Western Liaoning reveals zoning structures of the zircons in the volcanic rocks. LA-ICP-MS chronometry shows that the central part of the zircons is remnant zircon with a U-Pb dating of 254 Ma,which is consistent with the age of the Early Mesozoic underplating granulites,and that the periphery is zircon crystallizing out of the host magma with a U-Pb dating of 116 Ma,which is highly consistent with the Ar-Ar dating of the host volcanic rocks.Compositions of the clinopyroxenes xenocrystals in the sanukites are similar to those of the clinopyroxenes in the underplating granulites,indicating that the granulites accreted to the lower crust in the Early Mesozoic have been reformed and disrupted by the upwelling diapers of the asthenosphere and taken part in formation of the sanukites in the Late Mesozoic.     

Rapid genome evolution in Pms 1 region of rice revealed by comparative sequence analysis

Pms1, a locus for photoperiod sensitive genic male sterility in rice, was identified and mapped to chromosome 7 in previous studies. Here we report an effort to identify the candidate genes for Pms1 by comparative sequencing of BAC clones from two cultivars Minghui 63 and Nongken 58, the parents for the initial mapping population. Annotation and comparison of the sequences of the two clones resulted in a total of five potential candidates which should be functionally tested. We also conducted com-parative analysis of sequences of these two cultivars with two other cultivars, Nipponbare and 93-11, for which sequence data were available in public databases. The analysis revealed large differences in sequence composition among the four genotypes in the Pms1 region primarily due to retroelement activity leading to rapid recent growth and divergence of the genomes. High levels of polymorphism in the forms of indels and SNPs were found both in intra- and inter-subspecific comparisons. Dating analysis using LTRs of the retroelements in this region showed that the substitution rate of LTRs was much higher than reported in the literature. The results provided strong evidence for rapid genomic evolution of this region as a consequence of natural and artificial selection.     

Experiment of the ~(40)Ar/~(39)Ar dating of diagenetic illite in gas reservoirs

40Ar/39Ar dating of diagenetic illite has been performed to investigate gas reservoirs in the Sulige Gas Field of the northern Ordos Basin. A series of technical challenges were confronted, including illite purification, Ar recoil loss, and separation of diagenetic illite from detrital illite. Mineral growth ages for diagenetic illite were obtained by this experiment, from which the age of gas emplacement was deduced to be later than 169 Ma.     

Potash-rich volcanic rocks and lamprophyres in western Shandong Province: 40Ar-39Ar dating and source tracing

Highly precise ⁴⁰Ar-³⁹Ar dating results demonstrate that the ages of potash-rich volcanic rocks in western Shandong Province are 114.7–124.3 Ma, and that of the lamprophyres is 119.6 Ma. The potash-rich volcanic rocks have relatively high (⁸⁷Sr÷⁸⁶Sr)_i ratios (0.708715–0.711418) and distinctly negative ε_nd values (−11.47–−17.54), and are enriched in radiogenic lead (²⁰⁶Pb÷²⁰⁴Pb=17.341−17.622, ²⁰⁷Pb÷²⁰⁴Pb=15.525−15.538, ²⁰⁸Pb÷²⁰⁴Pb = 37.563−37.684). Similarly, the lamprophyres also have quite low ε_nd values (−11.57–−19.64). Based on the fact that the Sr, Nd and Pb isotopic compositions of potash-rich volcanic rocks are very consistent with that of the clinopyroxene separates, and by integrating comprehensive analyses of their tectonic settings, and extensive comparisons of the Sr, Nd isotopic compositions with that of the related simultaneous rocks, it is concluded that the potash-rich volcanic rocks and lamprophyres in western Shandong Province were most possibly derived from the partial melting of enriched mantle which was caused by source contamination and metasomatism of subducted continental crustal materials.     

Mantle xenoliths from Late Cretaceous basalt in eastern Shandong Province： New constraint on the timing of lithospheric thinning in eastern China

Studies of mantle xenoliths hosted in both the Cenozoic alkali basalt and the Early Paleozoic kimberlite suggest that part of the subcontinental lithosphere as thick as more than 100 km has been lost from the Early Paleozoic to Cenozoic[1—8]. Neither the scale and mechanism nor the accurate timing of the lithospheric thinning has been precisely constrained[7-12]. One of the reasons for this is that there are only a few Mesozoic basalts cropped out, especially, few containing mantle-derived …     

SHRIMP U-Pb zircon geochronology of Yangfang aegiriteaugite syenite in Wuyi Mountains of South China and its tectonic implications

In addition to the wide spread peraluminous granites, some alkaline or alkali-rich intrusive rocks were recently observed in the Wuyi Mountains. The Yangfang aegiriteaugite syenites in the Wuyi Mountains are strongly enriched in light rare earth elements (LREE), K, Ba, Ga, Zr and Y. What is more, differentiations of REE are obvious. In addition, the Yangfang aegiriteaugite syenites have also some characteristics similar to A-type granite. Zircons are selected from the Yangfang aegiriteaugite syenites for Sensitive High-Resolution Ion Microprobe (SHRIMP-Ⅱ) U-Pb geochronology study. 15 analyses give concordant 206Pb/238U ages in a narrow range of 233—249 Ma, which correspond to a single age population with a weighted mean 206Pb/238U age of 242 4 Ma, which records the crystallization time of the aegiriteaugite syenites. It is suggested that: (1) there were early Triassic peralkaline intrusive rocks in South China; (2) the early Indosinian extension event was probably active in local area, South China. This discovery provides a new insight for farther understanding of 揑ndosinian orogeny in South China.     

攀西地区早白垩世以来地壳抬升运动的裂变径迹年龄研究

通过对扬于板块西缘攀枝花一西昌地区麻粒岩中锆石和磷灰石的裂变径迹(FT)年龄测定，首次研究和报道了该区中一新生代地壳的低温热历史和抬升运动过程，分析显示，锆石FT年龄为143．8—68．4Ma；磷灰石FT年龄为24．1—12．8Ma．磷灰石FT平均长度的变化范围在10．54—13．20μm．研究表明，攀西地区从早白垩世到白垩纪末期地壳抬升是十分缓慢的，抬升速率仅为46—51m/Ma；但从第三纪开始地壳抬升运动明显加快，抬升速率达208-391m/Ma．这可能是印度板块与欧亚板块碰撞效应．     

锶同位素地层学在海相地层定年中的潜在价值

锶同位素地层学在海相地层的对比和定年中具有十分重要的作用。随着锶同位素地层学的深入研究，人们清楚地认识到海水的锶同位素组成是全球变化的灵敏指示剂。显生宙以来全球海水的^87Sr／^86Sr比值是时间的函数，可以把锶同位素组成用于海相地层的定年和进行全球对比，估计沉积间断持续时间、生物带的时间范围和发展阶段，从而为重要地球化学周期的预测提供基础参数。当锶同位素地层学用于定年时，其地质年龄的精确度取决于几个因素，包括样品原始锶同位素组成的保存情况、分析精度、用于建立数据库样品年龄的可信度以及^87Sr／^86Sr比值—年龄曲线的最佳拟合方法等。     

Hf isotopic compositions of the standard zircons for U-Pb dating

Zircon, a common accessory mineral in various kindsof rocks, is an important subject for U-Pb isotopic dating.With requirements for high spatial resolution with highprecision and accuracy, SHRIMP (Sensitive High Resolu-tion Ion Micro Probe) and LA-ICPMS (Laser AblationInductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry) nowserve as the important tools in zircon U-Pb dating. Sinceboth methods need standard zircon for external age cali-bration, an ideal standard zircon is critical for obtai…