Preliminary ESR dating results of fault barite shed new insights into the retrospective history of bedrock fault activities in basaltic regions

Abstract

The chronology of fault activity in bedrock is critical to constraining and understanding periods of active faulting, assessing seismic hazards, and mitigating the effects of earthquakes. However, because of the lack of suitable materials for dating, the temporal reconstruction of faulting in bedrock remains highly challenging for geologists. In the present study, we determine for the first time the electron spin resonance (ESR) ages of fault barite (BaSO₄), which is produced by episodes of intense faulting on basalt bedrock fault surfaces. Three barite samples were obtained from a basalt fault section (27°5′23″N, 100°25′45″E, 1.8 km above sea level) of the Lijiang–Xiaojinhe Fault (LXF), southeastern Tibetan Plateau, for ESR measurements. Similar to marine barite, the ESR spectrum of fault barite shows an electron-type center with g = 2.0037, 2.0034, and 2.0028 attributed to SO₃⁻. The signal intensity systematically increased with increasing gamma-ray dose. Dose rates were calculated using a model based on the location and burial depth of the barite samples, as well as their surrounding bedrock. The three barite samples yield ESR ages of 131 ± 26, 503 ± 61, and 1416 ± 246 ka, respectively, which indicate that the LXF was active during the Early and Middle Pleistocene. The three ESR ages for fault barite from basalt extend the time range of activity of the LXF compared with previous carbonate ESR and radiocarbon dating results. Consequently, we propose that ESR dating of barite is valuable for reconstructing the history of bedrock fault activity. However, given that this investigation represents a preliminary application of the fault-barite ESR method, further study is needed to confirm its usefulness and the accuracy and precision of dating results.