Genesis of the Early Indosinian Darongshan Granitoid in South China: Response to the Subduction of the Eastern Paleo-Tethys Ocean

Abstract

The Bangxi–Chenxing suture zone is an essential area from which information about the closure history of the eastern Paleo-Tethys Ocean can be obtained. The Darongshan granitoid, which is adjacent to this suture, lies among the widely distributed granitic rocks and few basic rocks in the southern Guangxi Province. Herein, we report the petrogeochemistry, zircon U–Pb ages, and zircon Hf isotopic data of the Darongshan pluton in this region. The LA-ICP-MS U–Pb zircon analysis indicates that the Darongshan pluton had formed at 249.9 ± 2.6 Ma. The Darongshan granites are silica-rich (SiO₂ = 65.68–72.91 wt%, mean = 69.89 wt%) with high Na₂O contents (Na₂O = 0.46–6.58 wt%, mean = 3.49), relatively high Mg (Mg^# = 35.12–73.31, mean = 57.73), and an average Fe₂O₃^T+TiO₂+MnO+MgO of 4.96. These features are similar to those of the Mg-andesitic/dioritic rock- (MA-) like tonalite–trondhjemite–granodiorites (TTGs). Chemical analyses show that all rocks are enriched in large-ion lithophile elements (Rb, Th, and U) and light rare earth elements, with weak negative Eu anomalies (Eu/Eu^∗ = 0.27–0.67), and Ta, Nb, and Ti depletion, with typical arc-like affinity. The zircon Hf isotopic results show zircon  _ƐHf(t) values ranging from -18.2 to -7.4 and the T_DM2 model ages 1.74–2.41 Ga. The petrogeochemistry and zircon Hf isotopic signatures indicate the magma generation of the Darongshan granitoid with fluid/melt released from the subducted slab and the fluid/melt assimilated and mixed with the mantle peridotite during ascent. Combining previous extant information on Permo–Triassic subduction/collision-related magmatism in the Bangxi–Chenxing with that of the Jinshajiang–Ailaoshan–Song Ma suture zones, the Darongshan granitoid is interpreted as a magmatic formation that was generated in an active continental margin arc environment during the subduction of the Early Indosinian eastern Paleo-Tethys Ocean and the South China Block, further supporting the idea that closure occurred during the Middle–Late Triassic.