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Timing of the initiation of the Jurassic Yanshan movement on the North China Craton: evidence from sedimentary cycles, heavy minerals, geochemistry, and zircon U–Pb geochronology

A series of significant geological changes indicated by deformation, magmatic–metallogenic systems, and the climate and environment occurred in East Asia during Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous time, but the timing and development of the ‘Yanshan movement’ on the north margin of the North China Craton has not been well-established. Based on the evidence of tectonic deformation and magmatic activity, previous studies resulted in two views of the beginning of the Yanshan movement: Early Jurassic vs. late Middle Jurassic. In this work, the timing of the initial Yanshan movement was investigated by examining the Jurassic Chenjiabangou section in the Ningwu–Jingle basin overlying the north-central part of the North China Craton. The timing of the initial Yanshan movement was constrained by restoration of stream flow directions, determination of boundaries of sedimentary cycles, identification of heavy mineral assemblages in clastic rocks, quantification of changes in chemical compositions, and zircon U–Pb isotope dating. The results indicate that the basal conglomerates of the Middle Jurassic Yungang Formation (Bathonian) mark the beginning of the Yanshan movements. Evidence supporting this conclusion includes the following. (1) The switch from transgressive lacustrine deposition to regressive lacustrine deposition in the Yungang Formation sedimentary succession indicates a change from extension to compression, possibly reflecting uplift. (2) Early-stage clastic rocks rich in quartz and feldspar are replaced by feldspar detritus in late-stage clastic rocks; the heavy mineral assemblage dominated by zircon at the early stages changed to garnet-dominated assemblage upsection. Moreover, the concentrations of CaO, MgO, CO2, and Fe2O3 + FeO and the Fe2O3/FeO ratio changed abruptly near the basal conglomerates of the Middle Jurassic Yungang Formation, suggesting increased denudation. (3) Conglomerates at the bottom of the Middle Jurassic Yungang Formation were deposited approximately 168 million years ago, as inferred from the age of zircons in tuffaceous micrite (160.6 ± 0.55 Ma) at the bottom of the Upper Jurassic Tianchihe Formation (Oxfordian) and the age of zircons in pyroclastic rocks (179.2 ± 0.79 Ma) in the Lower Jurassic Yongdingzhuang Formation (Toarcian). These lines of evidence indicate that initial Jurassic Yanshan movement began 168 million years ago during Middle Jurassic time.