Metamorphic P-T-t evolution of amphibolite in the north Hengshan terrane, North China Craton: Insights into the late Paleoproterozoic tectonic processes from initial collision to final exhumation

Amphibolite retrograded from high-pressure (HP) mafic granulite can provide valuable insight into exhumation of deeply buried crust in orogenic belts. In the north Hengshan terrane of the North China Craton, amphibolite occurs as rims of HP mafic granulite block or as smaller homogeneous boudins representing retrograde products of the granulite. Three amphibolite samples were selected. The rocks are mainly composed of hornblende + plagioclase + quartz + biotite + ilmenite with or without garnet pseudomorph consisting of plagioclase + hornblende + ilmenite and symplectite of hornblende + plagioclase ± clinopyroxene. The pseudomorph-, symplectite-bearing sample experienced a post-peak isothermal decompression at >800 °C that was accompanied by breakdown of garnet and clinopyroxene. Isopleths of the maximum An in plagioclase and Ti in hornblende were used to constrain the T_max stage of ca. 6 kbar/825−850 °C, which was followed by cooling and post-cooling decompression. For the sample showing an “equilibrated” mineral assemblage, a medium-temperature decompression from >6.8 kbar/685 °C to 3.6−4.8 kbar/640−660 °C was inferred. P-T evolution of the north Hengshan terrane is characterized by two discrete (post-peak and post-cooling) decompression processes. Zircon U-Pb dating of amphibolite yields a metamorphic age of 1868 ± 15 Ma, which is interpreted to record the timing of late amphibolization. Synthesized metamorphic P-T-t data in the Hengshan-Wutai area indicate a complicated tectonic evolution that includes an older collisional orogeny at ca. 1.95 Ga and a younger metamorphism at ca. 1.85 Ga. The post-cooling decompression path of the amphibolite may reflect final exhumation of the north Hengshan terrane through the late deformation/metamorphism of the Zhujiafang shear zone.