Hematite (U-Th)/He thermochronometry unveils unique exhumation history: An example from the Dexing porphyry copper deposit, Southern China
-
Hong Zhang
,
Yu Wang
Abstract
Hematite, commonly found in endogenetic deposits, plays a crucial role in monitoring temperature variations during cooling history and can be used for (U-Th)/He dating. Hematite thermochronometry, when combined with apatite and zircon (U-Th)/He dating, also provides the clearest guide to the timing of the latest thermal evolution path. In this study, we established a new method of hematite (U-Th)/He thermochronometry based on an optimized analytical protocol to reveal the evolution of the latest uplift and cooling history of the Dexing porphyry copper deposit (DPCD) in South China. Two hematite samples from the Tongchang and Fujiawu mines in the DPCD yielded age distributions of 92–11.2 and 112–24 Ma, respectively, and gave closure temperatures between 180 and 215 °C based on their relations to hematite particle sizes (88–199 μm). Combined with the published (U-Th)/He thermochronological data on zircon and apatite, we propose that the DPCD may have experienced a prolonged thermal history characterized by a temperature decrease. The initial exhumation and uplift happened at 112 Ma, and then a rapid uplift occurred from 11.2 to 8.0 Ma. This study demonstrates that hematite (U-Th)/He dating can be effectively applied to reveal the uplift and preservation history of porphyry copper deposits.
Acknowledgments and Funding
We thank the reviewers and the editor for constructively engaging with our work to improve the presentation of our work. We also thank Peng Peng and Lin Wu from the Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Science, for earlier manuscript suggestions. This study was supported by the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars (42025301) and Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant 42130102).
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Artikel in diesem Heft
- Hematite (U-Th)/He thermochronometry unveils unique exhumation history: An example from the Dexing porphyry copper deposit, Southern China
- Viscosity measurements of selected lunar regolith simulants
- Formation of nano-CdS solid solution: A mechanism for Cd enrichment in sphalerite
- Identification of the nature of recycled carbonates in the mantle: Insights from the Mo-Mg isotopic pair
- Discriminating ionic mobility between diffusivity and electrical conductivity experiments on Earth’s silicate materials
- Morphological approach to understanding mineral alteration and nanoparticle formation under alkaline conditions using granitic rock thin sections
- Identification of hydroandradite in CM carbonaceous chondrites: Aproduct of calc-silicate alteration on C-complex asteroids
- Growth and crystallographic features of interpenetrant twins in natural diamonds
- Determination of the oxidation state of iron in calcic pyroxene using the electron microprobe flank method
- Formation mechanism of boehmite and diaspore in karstic bauxites: Trace element geochemistry in source materials using a large sample geochemical dataset and a random forest model
- High-temperature Raman spectroscopy of K2Ca(CO3)2 bütschliite and Na2Ca2(CO3)3 shortite
- Effects of high-temperature annealing and low-temperature metamictization on Archean zircon: Constraints from U-Pb isotopes, trace elements, and Raman dating
- Nanoscale insights into weathering of Ti-bearing minerals and heterogeneous crystal growth mechanisms of nano Ti oxides in altered volcanic ash
- High-pressure single-crystal X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy of boltwoodite, K0.63Na0.37[(UO2)(SiO3OH)](H2O)1.5
- Nanoscale characterization of chrysocolla, black chrysocolla, and pseudomalachite from supergene copper deposits of Atacama Desert in northern Chile
