Late Paleozoic Accumulation of Coal-Bearing Successions in the Wuhai Coalfield, Western North China: Back-Arc Basin Response to Southward Subduction of the Paleo-Asian Ocean

Jia Liu, Jiaopeng Sun (), Qiang Chen, Feng Kou, Yao Ma, Teng Wang, Qian Zhang, Weidong He, Lei He and Yukun Qi
Additional contact information
Jia Liu: College of Coal and Chemical Industry, Shaanxi Energy Institute, Xianyang 712000, China
Jiaopeng Sun: State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Department of Geology, Northwest University, Northern Taibai Str. 229, Xi’an 710069, China
Qiang Chen: School of Earth Science and Resources, Chang’an University, Middle-Section of Nan’er Huan Road, Xi’an 710054, China
Feng Kou: Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum International Energy and Chemical Co., Ltd., Xi’an 710000, China
Yao Ma: Key Laboratory of Shaanxi Province for Oil and Gas Accumulation Geology, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, Xi’an Shiyou University, Xi’an 710065, China
Teng Wang: State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Department of Geology, Northwest University, Northern Taibai Str. 229, Xi’an 710069, China
Qian Zhang: State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Department of Geology, Northwest University, Northern Taibai Str. 229, Xi’an 710069, China
Weidong He: State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Department of Geology, Northwest University, Northern Taibai Str. 229, Xi’an 710069, China
Lei He: State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Department of Geology, Northwest University, Northern Taibai Str. 229, Xi’an 710069, China
Yukun Qi: State Key Laboratory of Continental Dynamics, Department of Geology, Northwest University, Northern Taibai Str. 229, Xi’an 710069, China

Energies, 2022, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-18

Abstract: The Late Paleozoic is an important epoch of coal-bed accumulation in the North China, particularly in its western segment, where a world-class coal field has been found and exploited for three decades. Coal-bearing layers recorded rapid Late Carboniferous to Early Permian sea-level rise that led to the evolution of the shallow marine tidal flat basin, followed by regression that resulted in the formation of deltaic facies. However, little attention has been paid to the tectonic factors that assisted in the coal accumulation processes, which have been demonstrated worldwide to be pivotal. In this study, we evaluate the significant influence of southward subduction of the middle segment of the Paleo-Asian Ocean (PAO) during Carboniferous to Early Permian deposition of coal-bearing neritic to deltaic successions in the western North China Block (NCB). We pinpoint a direct link between basin-filling evolution of the northwestern Ordos Basin and the progressive uplift of the Inner Mongolia continental arc triggered by the south-dipping subduction of the Solonker ocean plate. Sedimentary facies variation and paleocurrent reconstruction indicate sedimentary routing from the north to northeast. The petrology and detrital zircon geochronology of sampled sandstones indicate evolving provenances from a dominated cratonic basement to a mixed orogen and continental arc. The Carboniferous samples are generally quartz arenites and contain a large number of Archean to Paleoproterozoic zircons with small amounts of Paleozoic arc pluton components, indicating sediment supply dominated by the western NCB Precambrian basement. In contrast, the youngest sample of the Shanxi Formation is sub-litharenite, the age spectrum of which is characterized by the dominance of ca. 450 and 270 Ma ages, indicative of a high influx of Paleozoic arc detritus. This shift in sandstone petrology, detrital zircon distribution, and depositional setting allows us to link the shoaling of the Ordos Basin with mountain building and the unroofing of the continental arc, which enhances our understanding of both the subduction of the PAO and coal accumulation in the NCB.

Keywords: Carboniferous to early Permian; Wuhai Coalfield; back-arc basin evolution; Paleo-Asian Ocean subduction; integrated provenance study (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/16/1/34/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/16/1/34/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jeners:v:16:y:2022:i:1:p:34-:d:1009478

Access Statistics for this article

Energies is currently edited by Ms. Agatha Cao

More articles in Energies from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().