Paleomagnetism of the Mesoproterozoic Duguan Formation in Luonan, North China, and its geologic and paleogeographic implications

Abstract

Knowledge of the tectonic and paleogeographic context of North China during the Proterozoic is pivotal for unraveling the origins of early multicellular eukaryotes and the dynamics of supercontinents like Nuna and Rodinia. However, stratigraphic correlations across basins, the tectonic framework, and North China’s position within Nuna and Rodinia, particularly its relationship with the Congo-São Francisco plate, are contentious. To address these issues we conducted a detailed paleomagnetic and rock magnetic study of the red dolomite of the Duguan Formation in the Xiaoqinling-Luanchuan region, part of the Xiong’er block of North China. Thermal demagnetization revealed a high-temperature remanence component, with an unblocking temperature exceeding 670 °C, likely carried by detrital hematite. This component passed both fold and reversal tests. After tilt correction, the site-mean direction of the high-temperature component is Ds = 76.7°, Is = 16.9°, ks = 30.4, a95 = 7.3° (14 sites). This corresponds to a paleomagnetic pole at 15.8° N, 200.4° E (dp/dm = 3.9°/7.5°). Comparison of this pole with previous high-quality Proterozoic poles from North China indicates that the Duguan pole falls between the Yangzhuang and Mengyin dykes (1630 Ma). Considering the existing zircon U-Pb dating results, we conclude that the Duguan Formation is older than the Yangzhuang Formation, equivalent to the upper part of the Gaoyuzhuang Formation. Comparison with the Proterozoic apparent polar wander (APW) paths of North China and Congo-São Francisco indicates that these two blocks could only have amalgamated after 1080 Ma, with no earlier connection. However, due to the limited quantity of Proterozoic paleomagnetic data from Congo-São Francisco, the details of this Neoproterozoic connection remain uncertain.