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Article

Metamorphic Evolution of the Archean Supracrustal Rocks from the Qingyuan Area of the Northern Liaoning Terrane, North China Craton: Constrained Using Phase Equilibrium Modeling and Monazite Dating

1
College of Earth Sciences, Chengdu University of Technology, Chengdu 610059, China
2
College of Geosciences, China University of Petroleum (Beijing), Beijing 102249, China
3
MOE Key Laboratory of Orogenic Belts and Crustal Evolution, School of Earth and Space Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Minerals 2022, 12(9), 1079; https://doi.org/10.3390/min12091079
Submission received: 4 July 2022 / Revised: 23 August 2022 / Accepted: 23 August 2022 / Published: 26 August 2022
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Isotopic Tracers of Mantle and Magma Evolution)

Abstract

:
Archean supracrustal rocks from the Qingyuan area of the northern Liaoning terrane, the North China Craton, occur as enclaves or rafts of various scales within tonalite–trondhjemite–granodiorite (TTG) domes. They were normally subjected to metamorphism at amphibolite facies with locally granulite facies. We collected biotite two-feldspar gneiss from the Hongtoushan of the Qingyuan area and conducted petrography, mineral chemistry, phase equilibrium modeling and monazite dating to reveal its metamorphic evolution. The peak condition was constrained to be 750–775 °C at ~7 kbar based on the stability of the inferred peak mineral assemblage and mineral compositions including the pyrite and grossular contents in the garnet core, and XMg in biotite. The final condition was constrained to be ~700 °C at ~6 kbar on the solidus based on the presence of muscovite in the final assemblage. The post-peak near-isobaric cooling process was consistent with the core→rim decreasing pyrite content in garnet. Monazite dating yielded a metamorphic age of ~2.50 Ga for the sample, coeval with the final magmatism of TTGs in the terrane. By combining other geological features, we suggest a vertical sagduction process to be responsible for the metamorphic evolution of the Qingyuan area. This process may be correlated with Archean mantle plume.

1. Introduction

Archean cratons are the stable remnants of the earth’s early continents [1,2]. They preserve the oldest rocks and minerals, such as Hadean zircons of ages up to ~4.4 Ga in the Jack Hills of the Yilgarn Craton [3], Eoarchean rocks of ≥3.8 Ga in the Acasta Gneiss Complex of the Slave Craton [4,5], the Isua supracrustal belt of southwest Greenland [6], the Nuvvuagittuq Greenstone belt in northeast Canada [7] and the Eastern Block of the North China Craton (NCC) [8,9]. Some of the Archean cratons preserve the “dome–and–keel” structures, where the supracrustal rocks occur as rafts within tonalite–trondhjemite–granodiorite (TTG) domes, or as belts between them (e.g., the Superior Craton, Pilbara Craton, Kaapvaal Craton) [10,11,12]. These supracrustal rocks were subjected to greenschist- to granulite-facies or even ultra-high temperature (UHT) metamorphism [10]. Decoding their metamorphic evolution can provide insights into the tectonic regime of the early earth.
Archean supracrustal rocks in the NCC were subjected to metamorphism at the late Neoarchean (~2.50 Ga), being coeval with or shortly less than 50 Ma around the final pulse of the TTGs [13,14,15]. They were recovered to record different peak P–T conditions. For example, the pelitic schist and amphibolites in the Taishan greenstone belt from the western Shandong terrane underwent greenschist- to amphibolite-facies metamorphism with peak conditions of 3–6 kbar/350–600 °C defined using the conventional geothermobarometer [16]; the mafic granulites from the Miyun–Chengde terranes underwent an amphibolite- to granulite-facies metamorphism of 6.5–12.0 kbar/650–900 °C [17,18,19]; and the pelitic granulites from the East Hebei terrane preserve the typical UHT mineral assemblage of orthopyroxene, sillimanite and quartz, and were defined to have UHT peak conditions of 7–8 kbar/960–1040 °C using phase equilibrium modeling [20]. These supracrustal rocks share similar anticlockwise P–T paths featured with post-peak near-isobaric cooling processes [21], which are normally recognized based on the symplektite around peak minerals, or the re-growth of hydrous minerals such as biotite and muscovite in metapelitic rocks or amphiboles in meta-basic rocks [16,17,18,19,20]. However, a garnet biotite gneiss of amphibolite facies from the East Hebei terrane was considered to record a different clockwise P–T path based on the mineral compositions, especially the garnet zoning profiles [22]. Therefore, more studies need to be conducted on Archean supracrustal rocks to document their metamorphic paths, and to further address the Archean tectonic regime of the craton.
The Qingyuan area of the northern Liaoning terrane shows “dome–and–keel” structures, and have Archean supracrustal rocks occurring as enclaves within TTG domes. These supracrustal rocks were normally subjected to amphibolite- to granulite-facies metamorphism at the late Neoarchean (2.48–2.52 Ga) [23,24,25,26,27,28,29]. Wu et al. (2013) [30] and Wu and Wei (2021) [28] have developed detailed metamorphic studies on the meta-basic supracrustal rocks (garnet amphibolites) from Hongtoushan, Beisanjia and Douhutun, and proposed that they metamorphosed at conditions of 7.65–8.40 kbar/780–810 °C or ~10 kbar/870–890 °C with anticlockwise P–T paths. Several models were proposed to be responsible for the metamorphic evolution of these amphibolites, and for the development of the Qingyuan area at the late Neoarchean, including: (i) a continental rift setting above a hotspot [31], (ii) a continent marginal arc setting triggered by oceanic subduction, followed by an arc–continent collision [24], (iii) a Neoarchean arc root setting [25], (iv) a primordial mantle plume setting [27,30] and (v) a vertical tectonic regime [28].
In this paper, we conduct detailed studies involving petrography, mineral chemistry, phase equilibrium modeling and monazite dating on biotite two-feldspar gneiss 15Q-4 collected from Hongtoushan of the Qingyuan area, to constrain its metamorphic evolution and to provide information for the tectonic regime.

2. Geological Setting

The North China Craton is composed of four Archean blocks, namely Yinshan, Ordos, Longgang and Langrim, and three Paleoproterozoic orogenic belts including the Khondalite belt, Jiao-Liao-Ji belt and Trans-North China Orogen [32] (Figure 1a). The Longgang and the Langrim blocks collided to form the Eastern Block through the ~1.90 Ga Jiao-Liao-Ji belt [33], while the Ordos and Yinshan blocks aggregated to form the Western Block along the Khondalite belt at ~1.95 Ga [34]. The Eastern and Western Blocks finally merged at 1.95–1.85 Ga by the Trans-North China Orogen [32,35]. Among them, the Longgang block is one of the oldest Archean blocks as it preserves the oldest rocks with ages up to ~3.85 Ga and detrital zircons of > 3.9 Ga in the East Hebei and northern Liaoning terranes [8,9,36].
The Qingyuan area from the northern Liaoning terrane shows domal structures of various scales, being composed of >80 % TTG gneisses and supracrustal rocks [30] (Figure 1b). The TTG gneisses were dated to share similar magmatic ages of 2.50–2.56 Ga [23,24,25,38]. The supracrustal rocks are known as the Qingyuan Group, occurring as various scales of rafts or enclaves within the TTG gneiss domes [25,39]. They are normally subdivided into Shipengzi, Hongtoushan and Nantianmen Formations upwards, constructing the typical sequence of greenstone belts [31]. The Shipengzi Formation is mainly composed of amphibolite and pyroxene amphibolite, with minor biotite plagioclase gneiss and ultramafic rocks including serpentinized dunite and lherzolite [25]. The Hongtoushan Formation, lying conformably on the Shipengzi Formation, mainly consists of pyroxene-absent or -bearing amphibolite and biotite plagioclase gneiss, with minor sillimanite- and/or kyanite-bearing gneiss. These rocks may have corresponding precursor rocks of tholeiitic basalt, silici-clastic rock and minor pelite. The Nantianmen Formation is predominated by amphibolite, two-mica quartz schist, biotite plagioclase gneiss, magnetite quartzite and marble, derived from basic volcanics, sediments, tuff and carbonate [25,27,31]. These supracrustal rocks underwent amphibolite- to granulite-facies metamorphism at the late Neoarchean [23,24,25,26,27,28,29], although a later Paleoproterozoic overprinting metamorphism of ~1.85 Ga was registered in meta-basic dykes in the area [28,40].

3. Petrology

3.1. Petrography and Mineral Compositions

Minerals in this sample were analyzed using an electron microprobe analyzer (EPM; JXA-8100, JEOL, Tokyo, Japan) at the Laboratory of Orogenic Belt and Crustal Evolution of Peking University, China. The analyses were conducted under conditions of a 15 kV accelerating voltage and a 10 nA probe current with a beam diameter of 2 μm for all phases. The results were standardized using natural and synthetic minerals of the SPI Company. Representative mineral compositions are listed in Table 1.
Sample 15Q-4 is a biotite two-feldspar gneiss, showing a gneissic structure and comprising 1–4 mm thick plagioclase-rich and -poor layers (Figure 2a). It is mostly composed of quartz (~40 vol.%), plagioclase (~25 vol.%), potassic feldspar (~25 vol.%), biotite (~5 vol.%), garnet (2 vol.%) and minor amounts of sillimanite, muscovite, magnetite and ilmenite. Garnet occurs as relict crystals of 0.3–0.7 mm with embayed rims in the plagioclase-poor layer (Figure 2a,b). It is departed by tiny-grained quartz, plagioclase, potassic feldspar and muscovite from fine-grained feldspars, showing features of melt recrystallization (Figure 2b). Most of the garnet grains have no zoning profiles with flat XPy [=Mg/(Fe2++Mg+Ca+Mn), defined accordingly for other components of 0.19–0.23, XAlm of 0.68–0.71, XGrs of 0.027–0.035 (with an average of ~0.03) and XSps of 0.06–0.08 (Figure 3a), except one of them exhibiting a core→rim zoning pattern with significantly increasing XAlm from ~0.71 to 0.74–0.77 and decreasing XPy from ~0.19 to 0.11–0.15, and slightly increasing XGrs from 0.025 to 0.035 (Figure 3b). Potassic feldspar normally occurs as tabular to anhedral grains of 0.1–0.8 mm coexisting with plagioclase, quartz and biotite (Figure 2a, b). It has XOr [=K/(K+Na+Ca)] of 0.88–0.96 and XAb [=Na/(K+Na+Ca)] of 0.03–0.11. Some of them are perthite with albite lamellae. Potassic feldspar can also occur as irregular grains of <0.1 mm with tiny-grained plagioclase and quartz around garnet (Figure 2b). Plagioclase is mostly irregular grains of 0.1–0.3 mm (Figure 2a,b) and exhibits an outwards increase in XAn [=Ca/(K+Na+Ca)] from 0.22–0.24 to 0.25–0.27, sometimes with a slight decrease in the rim (Figure 3c). It can also show as tiny grains of <0.1 mm around garnet. Biotite occurs as oriented flakes of 0.05–0.5 mm, forming the gneissic structure (Figure 2a). It exhibits a Ti of 0.19–0.22 p.f.u., XMg [=Mg/(Mg+Fe2+)] of 0.42–0.44 (Figure 3d) and a high F of 0.16–0.29 wt.%. Quartz is mostly irregular grains of 0.1–0.3 mm, forming triple junction textures with plagioclase and potassic feldspar (Figure 2a,b), or as rounded inclusions within garnet or feldspars. It can also occur as tiny grains of <0.05 mm around garnet, or as irregular stripes with small dihedral angles at the margin of biotite and feldspars, showing features of melt crystallization. Sillimanite is normally acicular grains of 0.1–0.3 mm long, having a consistent orientation with biotite (Figure 2a,c). Muscovite shows as flakes of <0.1 mm, normally with sillimanite, around magnetite or at the rim of biotite (Figure 2c–g). Ilmenite only occurs as tiny grains included in biotite or potassic feldspar. Magnetite is irregular or rounded grains of 0.1–0.5 mm, normally surrounded by muscovite (Figure 2d–g). Based on the observations and mineral compositions presented above, the peak and final assemblages can be inferred. The peak assemblage consists of coexisting minerals including fine-grained garnet, plagioclase, potassic feldspar, biotite, sillimanite, quartz, magnetite and ilmenite, while the final assemblage is characterized by the presence of muscovite and the growth of tiny-grained quartz, plagioclase and potassic feldspar around garnet. It is worthy to mention that the final minerals occur locally around garnet, magnetite and biotite, showing potential melt accumulation.

3.2. Bulk-Rock Composition

The bulk-rock composition of the sample was analyzed at the Key Laboratory of Crustal Dynamics, Institute of Crustal Dynamics, CEA, Beijing, China, with X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF) (Shimadzu, Kyoto, Japan). Analytical uncertainties were 1–3% for major elements. The sample had SiO2 = 73.90 wt.%, TiO2 = 0.21 wt.%, Al2O3 = 12.70 wt.%, FeOtot = 3.88 wt.%, MgO = 0.66 wt.%, CaO = 1.36 wt.%, Na2O = 2.31 wt.%, K2O = 4.53 wt.% and MnO = 0.04 wt.%, showing higher SiO2 and K2O and lower MgO, Na2O and CaO than the average Archean graywackes [41], and being similar to arkose with 52 percentage normative feldspar [42]. The Mg# (=MgO/(MgO+FeO)) and A/CNK [=Al2O3/(CaO+Na2O+K2O)] of the sample were 0.23 and 1.14, respectively.

4. Phase Equilibrium Modeling

Pseudosections can show various equilibrium mineral assemblages in the P–T space for a single composition, based on internally consistent thermodynamic datasets [43]. It may be contoured by the compositions and/or proportions of minerals, providing insights into metamorphic P–T conditions or even evolution histories [28,30]. In the calculation, we generally use the whole-rock compositions analyzed by ICP-OES to model the phase equilibria observed in a thin section, in addition to the following cases including (i) the presence of zoned porphyroblasts, (ii) the heterogeneous accumulation of minerals or melt and (iii) the presence of retrograde metamorphic reactions [44]. In our sample, garnet occurred only in the plagioclase-poor layer, so we preferred to generate an effective composition to calculate the pseudosection by consuming plagioclase to be ~10 vol.% instead of ~25 vol.% in the whole thin section.
A pseudosection for the sample 15Q-4 was modeled in the system NCKFMASHTO (Na2O–CaO–K2O–FeO–MgO–Al2O3–SiO2–H2O–TiO2–Fe2O3) using THERMOCALC 3.40 with the internally consistent thermodynamic dataset ds62 [43]. The re-parameterized a–x models included garnet, biotite, orthopyroxene, cordierite and melt [45], plagioclase and potassic feldspar [46] and magnetite and ilmenite [47]. The H2O and O (Fe2O3) contents were adjusted using T–M (H2O) and T–M (O) diagrams (Figure S1). The composition used in the P–T diagram was H2O = 1.38 mol.% SiO2 = 79.50 mol.%, Al2O3 = 8.05 wt.%, CaO = 0.61 mol.%, MgO = 1.05 mol.%, FeO = 3.49 mol.%, K2O = 3.11 mol.%, Na2O = 2.41 mol.%, TiO2 = 0.17 mol.% and O = 0.23 wt.%, showing higher SiO2, Al2O3 and K2O, and lower CaO than the analyzed whole-rock composition.
The P–T pseudosection was calculated with quartz, potassic feldspar and plagioclase in excess in the P–T window of 2–12 kbar/600–850 °C. The fluid-absent solidus occurred at temperatures of 660–760 °C. Garnet had a wide stability almost all over the window. The biotite-out curve was nearly temperature-depended within temperatures of 750–790 °C. The pseudosection was contoured with isopleths of XPy and XGrs in garnet (xg and zg on Figure 4) and XMg and Ti in biotite (xb and tb on Ture 4) for the relevant mineral assemblages. The inferred peak mineral assemblage involving garnet, potassic feldspar, plagioclase, biotite, sillimanite, quartz, magnetite and ilmenite was stable in a large P–T range of 4–9 kbar/730–780 °C in the presence of melt, bounded by biotite- and ilmenite-out curves on the higher and lower temperature limits, and muscovite- and cordierite-in curves on the higher and lower pressure limits. The measured XPy of 0.19–0.23 in the core of the garnet was plotted in this field and yielded a narrow peak temperature range of 750–775 °C, being consistent with the measured XMg of 0.42–0.44 in biotite. The temperature uncertainties of the XPy and XMg isopleths were calculated to be ~0 °C and ~12 °C (two-sigma level), respectively, using THERMOCALC. These results are considered to be minimum because they are propagated from the uncertainties on the enthalpy alone. The predicted Ti in biotite that can be plotted in the field of peak mineral assemblage has a maximum of ~0.16 p.f.u., lower than the measured Ti of 0.19–0.22 p.f.u. in the biotite of the sample. The lower XPy of 0.11–0.15 in the rim of the garnet matches this peak field and the ilmenite-absent field, defining a cooling temperature of 720–740 °C. The isopleths of XGrs in the garnet are near-horizontal on Figure 4, exhibiting positive relationship with pressures. The measured XGrs of 0.025–0.035 in the garnet yielded pressures of 5.5–7.7 kbar in the relevant field, and the average value of ~0.03 defined peak and cooling pressures of 7–6 kbar with an uncertainty of ~0.2 kbar (two-sigma level) at the constrained peak and cooling temperatures.
However, the observed final assemblage featured with the presence of muscovite occurred at higher pressures of >7.2 kbar, being inconsistent with the defined cooling path. This may be because the residual melts were locally segregated and crystallized to form the final assemblage, being not completely equilibrated with other minerals. Thus, a T–M (melt) pseudosection was calculated at ~6 kbar by adding more melts in the mineral assemblage on the solidus of Figure 4 to model the phase equilibrium of the final assemblage. As shown in Figure 5, the fluid-absent solidus shifted slightly when the mode of the melt increased, and the muscovite-present final assemblage occurred at ~700 °C on the solidus when the melt mode increased to >3 mol.%.
As a result, the core→rim decreasing XPy from 0.19–0.23 to 0.11–0.15 at a constant XGrs of ~0.03 in the garnet suggests a post-peak near-isobaric cooling path on the pseudosection from ~7 kbar/750–775 °C in the inferred peak mineral assemblage to ~6 kbar/720–740 °C in the ilmenite-absent assemblage. The muscovite-present final assemblage defines a final condition of ~6 kbar/~700 °C on the solidus. The metamorphic reaction along the path was calculated to be Grt + Ksp + Ilm + Mag + Liq = Pl + Bt + Sill + Qz + Ms, being responsible for the occurrence of tiny-grained feldspars, muscovite and quartz around the embayed garnet.

5. Monazite Age Dating

Monazite, a common accessory mineral in metamorphic and magmatic rocks or a detrital mineral in sedimentary rocks, normally has a low initial Pb and high Th, U and REE contents [49]. It grows or recrystallizes during amphibolite- to granulite-facies metamorphism and is prone to being partially to totally reset from isotope inheritance [50]. These make it more sensitive relative to zircon in recording metamorphic ages [51]. In this sample, monazites were normally anhedral to rounded grains of 50–150 μm with length/width ratios of 1:1–3:1. They occurred in equilibrium with potassic feldspar, plagioclase and quartz, and could also have these minerals as inclusions, suggesting their metamorphic origins. The BSE imaging of individual monazite grains was carried out at the Nanjing Hongchuang Exploration Technology Service Company Limited on a HTACHI S-3000N scanning electron microscope (SEM) (Tokyo, Japan) with a 2 min scanning time at conditions of 15 kV and 120 μA. The LA-ICP-MS isotope analyses were performed at the Wuhan Sample Solution Analytical Technology Co., Ltd., Wuhan, China, using an Agilent 7500a ICP-MS system connected with an excimer laser ablation system (GeoLas 2005) with an automatic positioning system. Detailed operating conditions and calibrating standards have been given by Liu et al. (2008b) [52]. 207Pb/206Pb, 206Pb/238U and 207Pb/235U ratios and apparent ages were calculated using the ICPMSDataCal 10.9 [53]. We used “Isoplot 3.0” to conduct the age calculations and the plotting of the concordia diagrams [54].
Forty analyses were undertaken on monazites, and the result is presented in Table 2. These analyses had apparent 207Pb/206Pb ages ranging between 2553 ± 24 Ma and 2461 ± 21 Ma. All of them were plotted on or near the concordia curve, defining a common upper intersect age of 2501 ± 6 Ma (MSWD = 1.2, n = 40) and a weighted mean 207Pb/206Pb age of 2501 ± 7 Ma (MSWD = 0.83, n = 40) (Figure 6a). These monazites exhibited right-inclined REE patterns with negative Eu anomalies (Eu/Eu* = 0.06–0.48) and a high (Gd/Lu)N of 55.71–215.89 (Figure 6b). They had a neglectable common Pb of 0–4 ppm and a total Pb of 767–3802 ppm. The Th/U ratios ranged within 1.3–68.3 with an average of 21.8 as the Th and U values were 3729.7–29,017.3 ppm and 306.3–3289.2 ppm, respectively (Figure 6c).

6. Discussion

6.1. Metamorphic Evolution

The biotite two-feldspar gneiss 15Q-4 was recovered to record a post-peak near-isobaric cooling process from the peak. The peak temperature was constrained to be 750–775 °C based on the stability of the inferred peak mineral assemblage (Grt + Kfs + Pl + Bt + Sil + Qz + Mag + Ilm +Liq) on the pseudosection, together with mineral compositions including the XPy of 0.19–0.23 in the garnet core and XMg of 0.42–0.44 in biotite. However, the measured Ti of 0.19–0.22 in biotite cannot be plotted in the peak field. This may be because the biotite-out curve was underestimated in the modeling. The predicted biotite-present fields on the pseudosection occupied temperatures of <790 °C (Figure 4), significantly lower than the results from experimental work where the biotite can be stable to >900 °C at ~7 kbar in pelites and greywackes [56]. It would be enlarged to higher temperatures if one modified the thermodynamic model by changing the ordering of Ti onto the M2 octahedral site instead of the M1 site [57], or incorporating other components (i.e., fluorine) in the system [58]. Thus, it is also possible that the measured Ti of 0.19–0.22 in biotite may suggest a higher peak temperature of >790 °C. A cooling temperature of 720–740 °C was constrained in the peak field or the ilmenite-absent field by the XPy of 0.11–0.5 in the garnet rim, while a final temperature of ~700 °C was defined by the stability of the muscovite-present final assemblage. This is consistent with the experimentally constrained temperature for the reaction of Ms + Ab + Qz = Sil + Kfs + Liq in Petö (1976) [59]. The pressure was constrained to be within 6–7 kbar by the average XGrs value of ~0.03 in the garnet core and rim in the relevant assemblages. Therefore, the post-peak near-isobaric cooling process to the final condition was correspondingly suggested by the core→rim decreasing XPy at a constant XGrs in the garnet, supported by the mineral relations that the tiny-grained feldspars, muscovite and quartz were around the embayed garnet. Furthermore, we prefer to consider that the sample was subjected to an anticlockwise metamorphic evolution involving a pre-peak up-pressure process based on the following reasons: (i) there was a slight core→rim increasing trend in the XGrs of garnet, suggesting an up-pressure process on the pseudosection (Figure 4); and (ii) the interlaid garnet amphibolite in the same locality was proposed to record a pre-peak low-P–T mineral assemblage within garnet [28,30].
For comparison, the peak condition was estimated using the garnet–biotite (GB) geothermometer [60], and the garnet–biotite–plagioclase–quartz (GBPQ) geobarometer [61]. The garnet core with a maximum XPy, the biotite with a maximum XMg and Ti and a plagioclase with a maximum XAn were used in the calculation. The peak temperature was calculated to be 751 ± 25 °C, which is consistent with the calculated result (~705 °C) using a Ti-in-biotite geothermometer within an error of ±50 °C [62], and also the defined peak temperature using a pseudosection. However, the calculated pressure of 3.7 ± 1.0 kbar was lower than the constrained pressure on the pseudosection using the XGrs of the garnet. This may be because the plagioclase composition used in the calculation was inappropriate. Possible reasons may be: (i) the plagioclase may not have reached complete equilibrium with the garnet during metamorphism as they rarely contacted each other; or (ii) compositional changes in the plagioclase were small and hard to be analyzed when there were too many plagioclases equilibrated with garnet, just as Spear and Florence (1992) [63] pointed out. Therefore, we favor the constrained pressure by the pseudosection.
The metamorphic age was dated to be ~2.50 Ga by the monazite, and is preferable to be interpreted as the age at the post-peak cooling process because (i) the (Gd/Lu)N values showed a neglectable correlation with Eu/Eu* (Figure 6d), suggesting that the monazite was not correlated with the garnet growth in the pre-peak process; and (ii) the Th/U ratios had a significant increase at an Eu/Eu* of <0.1 (Figure 6e), indicating that monazite may crystallize with zircon from the melt in the cooling process [51].

6.2. Tectonic Implications

Sample 15Q-4 was recovered to have an anticlockwise P–T path, involving a peak temperature of 750–775 °C or even >790 °C at ~7 kbar, and a subsequent cooling process to ~700 °C at ~6 kbar on the solidus. Similar metamorphic paths were proposed in meta-basic rocks from Qingyuan areas [28,30] and in supracrustal rocks including mafic, pelitic or greywacke rocks in other Archean terranes in the Eastern Block of the NCC, especially the East Hebei terrane [20,44] (Figure 7), although the metamorphic P–T conditions range from amphibolite-facies to normal or even ultra-high temperature granulite-facies. These metamorphic processes were all dated to occur at ~2.50 Ga [20,28,30], being coeval with the final pulse of the crystallization ages of the TTGs [14].
Metamorphic P–T paths are of great significance in inferring the tectonic settings and processes [70]. Anticlockwise P–T paths involving post-peak near-isobaric cooling are normally considered to be related with the intrusion or underplating of mantle-derived magma [15,71,72]. In the Qingyuan area of the northern Liaoning terrane, these anticlockwise metamorphic paths are argued to result from (i) a continental rift above a hotspot [31], (ii) a continent marginal arc setting triggered by oceanic subduction [24], (iii) a Neoarchean arc root setting [25], (iv) a (primordial) mantle plume setting [27,30,73] and (v) a vertical sagduction regime [28]. Among these models, the arc-correlated geological settings were normally based on the arc-like geochemical compositions of the basalts, while the rift model was mostly from the bimodal volcanic assemblages in the terrane or even in the whole NCC. However, they cannot be responsible for the geological features including (i) the Archean unique “dome-and-keel” structures in the terrane, which are inconsistent with the linear structures formed in modern plate tectonics, but are successfully modeled in the Archean vertical tectonic regime [74], (ii) the occurrence of (basaltic) komatiite, which suggests an extremely high mantle potential temperature of >1650 °C [25,31] and (iii) the synchroneity among the deposition and metamorphism of supracrustal rocks, the magmatism of the TTGs and the metallogenesis of sulfide Cu-ore deposits within ~50 Ma around ~2.5 Ga [14,37] (Table 3). Therefore, we follow Wu and Wei (2021) [28] to consider that the anticlockwise metamorphic paths of the supracrustal rocks may be subjected to a vertical tectonic process, where the upwelling of the TTG magma occurs with the down dropping of supracrustal rocks. This may be triggered or correlated with Archean mantle plume.

7. Conclusions

(1) The biotite two-feldspar gneiss from the Hongtoushan of the Qingyuan area, the NCC, were limited to have a peak condition of 750–775 °C, ~7 kbar, together with a post-peak near-isobaric cooling process to a final condition of ~700 °C, ~6 kbar.
(2) Monazite dating yielded a metamorphic age of ~2.50 Ga for the sample, coeval with the final magmatism of the TTGs in the terrane.
(3) We prefer a vertical sagduction process to be responsible for the metamorphic evolution of the Qingyuan area. This process may be correlated with Archean mantle plume.

Supplementary Materials

The following figure is available online at https://www.mdpi.com/article/10.3390/min12091079/s1. Figure S1: T-M(H2O) and T-M(O) diagrams at 6.5 kbar.

Author Contributions

T.L. calculated the pseudosection, performed the data analyses and wrote the manuscript. Z.L. collected the samples, conducted the experiments, developed the project and revised the manuscript. C.W. revised the manuscript. All authors discussed the results and were involved in writing and revising the paper. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding

This work was financially supported by the Science Foundation of China University of Petroleum, Beijing (Grant Number: 2462021YXZZ004) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Numbers: 42002238 and 41872057).

Acknowledgments

The authors thank assistant editor and managing editor very much for their editorial work, and two anonymous reviewers for their constructive and insightful comments and suggestions.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

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Figure 1. (a) Tectonic subdivision of the North China Craton (modified after [32,37]), showing the location of the Qingyuan area. (b) Geological sketch map of the Qingyuan area (modified after [25,27]), showing lithological distribution and sampling location.
Figure 1. (a) Tectonic subdivision of the North China Craton (modified after [32,37]), showing the location of the Qingyuan area. (b) Geological sketch map of the Qingyuan area (modified after [25,27]), showing lithological distribution and sampling location.
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Figure 2. (a) Photomicrographs of the biotite two-feldspar gneiss using plane-polarized light (left) and back-scattered electron (right), showing the gneiss structure and compositional layers. (b) Garnet with embayed rims occurring in plagioclase-poor layer, and surrounded by tiny-grained feldspars, quartz and muscovite. (c) Sillimanite occurring in orientation with biotite. (d–g) Muscovite occurring around magnetite or biotite, suggesting melt crystallization.
Figure 2. (a) Photomicrographs of the biotite two-feldspar gneiss using plane-polarized light (left) and back-scattered electron (right), showing the gneiss structure and compositional layers. (b) Garnet with embayed rims occurring in plagioclase-poor layer, and surrounded by tiny-grained feldspars, quartz and muscovite. (c) Sillimanite occurring in orientation with biotite. (d–g) Muscovite occurring around magnetite or biotite, suggesting melt crystallization.
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Figure 3. (a,b) Composition zoning profiles for garnets. (c) XAn profiles of plagioclases. (d) XMg versus Ti diagram showing the compositions of biotite. XAlm [=Fe2+/(Fe2++Mg+Ca+Mn)], defined accordingly for XPy, XGrs and XSps; XAn = Ca/(Ca+Na+K); XMg = Mg/(Mg+Fe2+).
Figure 3. (a,b) Composition zoning profiles for garnets. (c) XAn profiles of plagioclases. (d) XMg versus Ti diagram showing the compositions of biotite. XAlm [=Fe2+/(Fe2++Mg+Ca+Mn)], defined accordingly for XPy, XGrs and XSps; XAn = Ca/(Ca+Na+K); XMg = Mg/(Mg+Fe2+).
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Figure 4. P–T pseudosection with proposed P–T path for sample 15Q-4 in the system NCKFMASHTO with the excess of potassic feldspar, plagioclase and quartz. Mineral abbreviations follow [48].
Figure 4. P–T pseudosection with proposed P–T path for sample 15Q-4 in the system NCKFMASHTO with the excess of potassic feldspar, plagioclase and quartz. Mineral abbreviations follow [48].
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Figure 5. T–M (melt) diagram at 6 kbar. The melt composition was calculated at 6 kbar on the solidus of Figure 4, and the composition at M (melt) = 0 equals to the composition for Figure 4.
Figure 5. T–M (melt) diagram at 6 kbar. The melt composition was calculated at 6 kbar on the solidus of Figure 4, and the composition at M (melt) = 0 equals to the composition for Figure 4.
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Figure 6. (a) U–Pb isotopic age distribution and average of analyzed monazites. (b) Chondrite-normalized REE patterns for the monazites (normalizing values after [55]). (c) Th versus U diagram for the monazites. (d,e) Eu/Eu* versus (Gd/Lu)N and Th/U diagrams for the monazites.
Figure 6. (a) U–Pb isotopic age distribution and average of analyzed monazites. (b) Chondrite-normalized REE patterns for the monazites (normalizing values after [55]). (c) Th versus U diagram for the monazites. (d,e) Eu/Eu* versus (Gd/Lu)N and Th/U diagrams for the monazites.
Minerals 12 01079 g006
Figure 7. Summarized P–T conditions and paths for Neoarchean supracrustal rocks from the Qingyuan area, and their comparison with the metamorphic paths of supracrustal rocks from the East Hebei Terrane. Thick arrow represents the P–T path of the studied sample 15Q-4. The P–T paths from the Qingyuan area: W13, from [30] and WW21, from [28]. The P–T paths from the East Hebei terrane: D17, from [44]; K16, from [64]; LW18, from [65]; L20, from [22]; LW20-G, from meta-greywacke in [66]; L22, from [20]. BGS and BPS, and TBGO and TBPO are experimentally constrained biotite-in and -out lines for greywacke and pelite compositions from [56]. JH96—the H2O-saturated granite solidus in the system Qz–Ab–Or–H2O [67]; P76—experimentally constrained Ms + Ab + Qz = Sil + Kfs + Liq reaction from [59]. The dry solidus of granodiorite is from [68]. The reactions of Al2SiO5 are calculated by THERMOCALC. The distributions of metamorphic facies are from [69] and abbreviations are: HPG, high-P granulite facies; NG, ‘normal’ granulite facies; UHTG, ultra-high temperature granulite facies; AM, amphibolite facies; Grt-AM, garnet amphibolite facies; EC, eclogite facies.
Figure 7. Summarized P–T conditions and paths for Neoarchean supracrustal rocks from the Qingyuan area, and their comparison with the metamorphic paths of supracrustal rocks from the East Hebei Terrane. Thick arrow represents the P–T path of the studied sample 15Q-4. The P–T paths from the Qingyuan area: W13, from [30] and WW21, from [28]. The P–T paths from the East Hebei terrane: D17, from [44]; K16, from [64]; LW18, from [65]; L20, from [22]; LW20-G, from meta-greywacke in [66]; L22, from [20]. BGS and BPS, and TBGO and TBPO are experimentally constrained biotite-in and -out lines for greywacke and pelite compositions from [56]. JH96—the H2O-saturated granite solidus in the system Qz–Ab–Or–H2O [67]; P76—experimentally constrained Ms + Ab + Qz = Sil + Kfs + Liq reaction from [59]. The dry solidus of granodiorite is from [68]. The reactions of Al2SiO5 are calculated by THERMOCALC. The distributions of metamorphic facies are from [69] and abbreviations are: HPG, high-P granulite facies; NG, ‘normal’ granulite facies; UHTG, ultra-high temperature granulite facies; AM, amphibolite facies; Grt-AM, garnet amphibolite facies; EC, eclogite facies.
Minerals 12 01079 g007
Table 1. Selected microprobe analyses for sample 15Q-4.
Table 1. Selected microprobe analyses for sample 15Q-4.
MineralGrt-cGrt-rPl-cPl-mPl-rKfsBt
SiO236.86 36.95 62.41 62.22 62.50 65.18 35.74
TiO20.02 0.11 3.81
Al2O320.74 20.56 23.79 23.78 23.90 18.55 18.62
Cr2O30.02 0.03
FeO32.71 34.50 0.09 0.24 20.27
MnO3.12 3.83 0.04 0.04 0.03 0.14
MgO4.77 2.68 8.66
CaO0.86 1.11 5.15 5.52 5.42 0.03 0.02
Na2O8.69 8.44 8.46 0.49 0.09
K2O0.15 0.13 0.08 15.65 10.02
Total99.0899.78100.21 100.20 100.65 99.95 97.49
O1212888811
Si2.968 2.999 2.759 2.753 2.752 3.002 2.681
Ti0.007 0.215
Al1.969 1.967 1.240 1.240 1.241 1.007 1.646
Cr0.002
Fe3+0.093 0.022 0.003 0.009
Fe2+2.110 2.319 1.272
Mn0.213 0.263 0.009
Mg0.572 0.324 0.968
Ca0.074 0.097 0.244 0.262 0.256 0.002
Na0.745 0.724 0.722 0.044 0.013
K0.008 0.007 0.004 0.920 0.960
Sum8.0008.0004.9984.9904.9864.9767.767
X(phase)0.190.110.240.260.260.950.43
Y(phase)0.0250.0320.750.730.740.05
X(Grt) = XPy; Y(Grt) = XGrs; X(Pl) = XAn; X(Kfs) = XOr; Y(Pl) = Y(Kfs) = XAb; X(Bt) = XMg; -c, grain core; -m, grain mantle; -r, grain rim. “–” means that the content is below the detection limit. The mineral formulas were calculated with the program AX (TJBH pages (filedn.com); accessed at 10 May 2022).
Table 2. Monazite isotopic data for sample 15Q-4.
Table 2. Monazite isotopic data for sample 15Q-4.
SpotTh (ppm)U (ppm)Th/UMeasured Isotopic RatiosCorrected Ages (Ma)
207Pb/206Pb207Pb/235U206Pb/238U207Pb/206Pb207Pb/235U206Pb/238U
15Q-4-014215 657 6.42 0.164 0.002 10.729 0.163 0.474 0.003 2498 24 2500 14 2501 14
15Q-4-0215,507 665 23.30 0.163 0.002 10.691 0.152 0.477 0.003 2483 24 2497 13 2515 13
15Q-4-0324,917 579 43.00 0.163 0.002 10.975 0.155 0.490 0.003 2484 24 2521 13 2569 15
15Q-4-0413,857 524 26.43 0.164 0.002 10.551 0.145 0.468 0.003 2495 24 2484 13 2473 12
15Q-4-0517,492 633 27.61 0.164 0.002 10.304 0.149 0.456 0.003 2494 23 2462 13 2422 12
15Q-4-0612,521 335 37.34 0.161 0.003 10.528 0.183 0.475 0.003 2478 32 2482 16 2504 15
15Q-4-0719,158 484 39.61 0.166 0.003 10.917 0.171 0.477 0.004 2518 27 2516 15 2515 16
15Q-4-089527 2243 4.25 0.164 0.002 10.660 0.123 0.471 0.002 2498 19 2494 11 2488 10
15Q-4-094853 477 10.17 0.166 0.002 10.992 0.163 0.482 0.003 2513 26 2522 14 2536 14
15Q-4-109960 2433 4.09 0.164 0.002 10.588 0.111 0.468 0.002 2496 17 2488 10 2476 10
15Q-4-1113,921 651 21.38 0.166 0.003 10.649 0.150 0.466 0.003 2516 26 2493 13 2467 12
15Q-4-1210,963 1184 9.26 0.166 0.002 10.654 0.138 0.467 0.003 2515 24 2493 12 2469 12
15Q-4-1311,328 479 23.66 0.164 0.003 10.562 0.156 0.469 0.003 2494 21 2485 14 2479 14
15Q-4-1413,058 896 14.57 0.162 0.002 10.491 0.145 0.468 0.003 2483 21 2479 13 2475 14
15Q-4-1513,026 1342 9.70 0.163 0.002 10.682 0.116 0.475 0.002 2487 19 2496 10 2507 11
15Q-4-168487 2504 3.39 0.161 0.002 10.552 0.107 0.475 0.002 2478 17 2484 10 2504 10
15Q-4-1721,469 1028 20.89 0.163 0.002 10.529 0.130 0.468 0.003 2487 21 2482 12 2476 12
15Q-4-1829,017 895 32.41 0.162 0.002 10.583 0.148 0.472 0.003 2483 24 2487 13 2492 13
15Q-4-198749 2015 4.34 0.160 0.002 10.527 0.127 0.475 0.003 2461 21 2482 11 2507 12
15Q-4-2013,411 2579 5.20 0.163 0.002 10.563 0.123 0.470 0.002 2487 14 2485 11 2481 10
15Q-4-216961 1106 6.29 0.163 0.002 10.606 0.139 0.473 0.003 2484 22 2489 12 2495 12
15Q-4-2214,278 547 26.09 0.163 0.003 10.767 0.174 0.480 0.004 2482 26 2503 15 2528 16
15Q-4-2320,755 354 58.62 0.164 0.003 10.892 0.209 0.483 0.004 2494 31 2514 18 2539 18
15Q-4-247409 2754 2.69 0.164 0.003 10.655 0.178 0.472 0.003 2494 28 2494 16 2492 13
15Q-4-2518,834 478 39.37 0.164 0.003 10.790 0.201 0.477 0.004 2502 66 2505 17 2513 16
15Q-4-2613,800 610 22.62 0.166 0.003 11.011 0.190 0.482 0.004 2513 27 2524 16 2534 16
15Q-4-2722,458 437 51.41 0.168 0.003 11.130 0.171 0.482 0.004 2535 27 2534 14 2535 15
15Q-4-2819,744 702 28.13 0.166 0.002 10.942 0.159 0.477 0.003 2524 24 2518 14 2513 15
15Q-4-2916,941 896 18.90 0.169 0.002 10.843 0.143 0.466 0.003 2545 22 2510 12 2464 12
15Q-4-304372 3289 1.33 0.167 0.002 10.879 0.139 0.471 0.003 2531 22 2513 12 2487 12
15Q-4-3120,928 306 68.34 0.169 0.003 11.068 0.196 0.474 0.004 2552 31 2529 17 2503 18
15Q-4-323730 653 5.71 0.170 0.002 11.323 0.166 0.484 0.003 2553 24 2550 14 2545 15
15Q-4-3311,496 402 28.62 0.167 0.003 10.977 0.193 0.475 0.004 2532 29 2521 16 2507 17
15Q-4-3412,076 683 17.68 0.165 0.002 10.550 0.147 0.464 0.003 2506 24 2484 13 2458 12
15Q-4-3520,761 750 27.67 0.165 0.002 10.786 0.157 0.473 0.003 2509 58 2505 14 2498 13
15Q-4-3621,990 912 24.11 0.167 0.003 10.778 0.164 0.469 0.003 2524 26 2504 14 2478 12
15Q-4-377265 2277 3.19 0.163 0.002 10.824 0.148 0.480 0.003 2500 24 2508 13 2529 11
15Q-4-3810,694 2297 4.66 0.165 0.002 10.750 0.148 0.473 0.003 2506 23 2502 13 2496 12
15Q-4-3919,216 572 33.58 0.167 0.003 11.077 0.171 0.481 0.004 2529 27 2530 14 2532 16
15Q-4-4018,429 539 34.16 0.165 0.003 11.005 0.195 0.483 0.004 2511 31 2524 17 2541 17
Table 3. Summary of metamorphic ages of supracrustal rocks and magmatic ages of TTGs in the Qingyuan area.
Table 3. Summary of metamorphic ages of supracrustal rocks and magmatic ages of TTGs in the Qingyuan area.
RocksLocationMagmatic Age (Ma)Metamorphic Age (Ma)Method Reference
Grantic gneissHongtoushan2520 ± 16 Conventional multi-grainLi and Shen, 2000 [75]
Grantic gneissPaozigou2519 ± 77
Amphibole fine-grained gneissXiaolaihe2515 ± 6 SHRIMP Wan et al., 2005 [23]
Amphibole fine-grained gneissTangtu2515 ± 7
Amphibole fine-grained gneissQingyuan2494 ± 52479 ± 5
TTG gneissFushun2530 ± 222477 ± 13
TTG gneissXiaolaihe2556 ± 182469 ± 19
Quartz dioritic gneissMajuanzi2571 ± 7 LA-ICP-MSBai et al., 2014 [76]
Quartz dioriteTangtu2496 ± 182427 ± 49
Plagioclase amphiboliteTangtu2530 ± 52507 ± 11; 2461 ± 26; 2350 ± 26
Tonalitic gneissJiubingtai2544 ± 4
Trondhjemitic gneissTangtu2518 ± 232473 ± 30
Trondhjemitic gneissJiubingtai2550 ± 102508 ± 49
Syenitic graniteJiubingtai2522 ± 4
Quartz dioriteYangjiadian 2478 ± 18LA-ICP-MSPeng et al., 2015 [25]
TonaliteBinghugou2528 ± 6
Binghugou2520 ± 12
Quartz mozodioriteYangjiadian2504 ± 5
AmphibolitePinglinghou 2474 ± 5
GranuliteJingjiagou2537 ± 82482 ± 5SHRIMP Wu et al., 2016 [26]
Grt-Hb-Bt-Pl gneissLongwangmiao2555 ± 102476 ± 9
Grt-Bt-Pl gneissXiaolaihe2497 ± 42476 ± 10
GranulitePinglinghou2515 ± 392485 ± 3
Grt-amphiboliteTangtu 2489 ± 3
Grt-Bt-Pl gneissTongshi 2484 ± 14
Trondhjemitic gneissXiajiabao2559 ± 11 LA-ICP-MSWang et al., 2016 [77]
Trondhjemitic gneissHuangqizhai2558 ± 11
Tonalitic gneissXiajiabao2525 ± 62496 ± 6
Trondhjemitic gneissDasuhe2504 ± 14
Monograntic gneissXiaojinchang2529 ± 32495 ± 38
Monograntic gneissHongqizhai2515 ± 3
Tonalitic gneissJiubingtai2522 ± 8 LA-ICP-MSWang et al., 2016 [78]
Tonalitic gneissJiubingtai2511 ± 42484 ± 6
Biotite trondhjemitic gneissHongmiaozi2528 ± 9
Trondhjemitic gneissYongling2537 ± 92487 ± 5
Tonalitic gneissSandaoguan2524 ± 6
Hornblende plagioclase gneissTangtu2550 ± 182508 ± 10LA-ICP-MSWang et al., 2017 [79]
Hornblende plagioclase gneiss 2561 ± 5
AmphiboliteWeiziyu2757 ± 6
AmphiboliteHuiyuan2525 ± 16
TTG gneissHongmiaozi2592 ± 42532 ± 43
TTG gneissHongmiaozi2585 ± 6
TTG gneissHongtoushan2573 ± 4
TTG gneissBaiqizhai2558 ± 4
TTG gneissHuiyuan2541 ± 5
TTG gneissHuiyuan2537 ± 5
Potassic granitoid gneissQingyuan2554 ± 232497 ± 19; 2495 ± 21
Potassic granitoid gneissBaiqizhai2554 ± 17
Potassic granitoid gneissHuiyuan2546 ± 3
Potassic granitoid gneissHongtoushan2515 ± 3
Porphyritic granodioriteYingerbu2559 ± 72500 ± 6LA-ICP-MSWang et al., 2017 [39]
Porphyritic granodioriteMajuanzi2550 ± 42510 ± 5
Porphyritic granodioriteFushun2542 ± 4
Medium-grained granodioriteWeiziyu2545 ± 12
Medium-grained monzograniteYongling2550 ± 82515 ± 9
Porphyritic quartz syenitic gneissShiwen2505 ± 9
AmphiboliteXiaolaihe2530 ± 4 LA-ICP-MSLi and Wei, 2017 [27]
AmphiboliteHongtoushan2539 ± 7
AmphiboliteTangtu2501 ± 5
AmphiboliteFangniugou2516 ± 3
AmphiboliteFangniugou2520 ± 42495 ± 8
AmphiboliteJinfengling2547 ± 192486 ± 37
Trondhjemitic gneissHongmiaozi2585 ± 14 LA-ICP-MSWang et al., 2018 [80]
Tonalitic gneissMajuanzi2588 ± 12
Monograntic gneissWeiziyu2555 ± 42516 ± 12
Biotite plagioclase gneissesXiaolaihe2565 ± 82516 ± 7LA-ICP-MSPeng et al., 2019 [81]
Mafic granuliteDongjinggou 1938 ± 12; 1843 ± 10LA-ICP-MSDuan et al., 2019 [40]
Garnet amphiboliteLvjiapu 2502 ± 9LA-ICP-MSWu and Wei, 2021 [28]
Garnet amphiboliteMajiadian 1821 ± 9
Dioritic gneissQingyuan2519 ± 132457 ± 21; 2389 ± 20LA-ICP-MSLi et al., 2021 [82]
Tonalitic gneissQingyuan2556 ± 42496 ± 8
Trondhjemitic gneissQingyuan2542 ± 52495 ± 7
Trondhjemitic gneissQingyuan2506 ± 82453 ± 13; 2401 ± 12
Biotite two-feldspar gneissHongtoushan 2473 ± 16LA-ICP-MSLi et al., 2022 [29]
Biotite two-feldspar gneissHongtoushan 2501 ± 7LA-ICP-MSthis paper
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Liu, T.; Li, Z.; Wei, C. Metamorphic Evolution of the Archean Supracrustal Rocks from the Qingyuan Area of the Northern Liaoning Terrane, North China Craton: Constrained Using Phase Equilibrium Modeling and Monazite Dating. Minerals 2022, 12, 1079. https://doi.org/10.3390/min12091079

AMA Style

Liu T, Li Z, Wei C. Metamorphic Evolution of the Archean Supracrustal Rocks from the Qingyuan Area of the Northern Liaoning Terrane, North China Craton: Constrained Using Phase Equilibrium Modeling and Monazite Dating. Minerals. 2022; 12(9):1079. https://doi.org/10.3390/min12091079

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Liu, Ting, Zhuang Li, and Chunjing Wei. 2022. "Metamorphic Evolution of the Archean Supracrustal Rocks from the Qingyuan Area of the Northern Liaoning Terrane, North China Craton: Constrained Using Phase Equilibrium Modeling and Monazite Dating" Minerals 12, no. 9: 1079. https://doi.org/10.3390/min12091079

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