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Improvements in analytical technique and data processing lead to a large deposit of detrital zircon U–Pb and Hf isotopic data in published journal articles, thesis and reports. With the support of Deep‐time Digital Earth Big Science Program, OneSediment Project conducted a team‐working effort to assemble the detrital zircon U–Pb and Hf isotopic data for mainland China and adjacent regions. Entity‐relationship diagram was constructed for detrital zircon data to determine what information need to be collected. Researchers and students from 13 institutions were organized together to fulfil this task and generated 13 detrital zircon datasets. The assembled datasets totally include 6635 samples and 560,596 analyses. The samples were checked in terms of lithology and stratigraphy according to the latest stratigraphic framework. Collected detrital zircon U–Pb and Hf isotopic data were recalculated for the best U–Pb age and εHf(t) values. They can be used to track crustal growth, tectonic evolution, provenance analysis and palaeogeographical change in regional and, when combined with other dataset, global scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydroclimate is an important factor controlling landscape evolution. But establishing the impact of hydroclimate is complicated by the influences of other processes and is especially hard to prove for those in deep time from geological record. During the late Permian, voluminous basaltic sediments were derived from the erosion of the Emeishan large igneous province in western South China. They provide a unique record critical in understanding the responses of tropical basaltic erosion to hydroclimate change without impacts of orogenic uplift, lithologic variation, vegetational difference and glacial‐interglacial change. Sampled successions define a negative carbon isotope excursion capable of making regional and global stratigraphic correlations in the middle Wuchiapingian interval corresponding to the final phase of the late Paleozoic ice age. This interval is associated with a petrofacies shift and a decreasing source weathering intensity, a downward shift of erosion loci, and a reduced coastal water paleosalinity. Applying present‐day temperature dependence pattern of basaltic weathering and using land surface temperatures approximated from nearby paleo‐seawaters, denudation rates were calculated for the Emeishan basaltic province and shows an increase from ∼71 to ∼107 m/Ma. This erosional acceleration is temporally correlated with a decrease in paleosalinity and likely linked to enhanced freshwater discharge in the middle Wuchiapingian. Scaling and landscape erosion modeling suggest ∼80%–130% increase in catchment precipitation could have driven this acceleration in denudation. Our work provides a positive test for the hydroclimate forcing on landscape erosion in deep time and underlines the mechanistic linkage of sediments with erosion and climate change. Plain Language Summary: Sedimentary records provide a unique way to track source weathering and erosion in the deep geological past. During the late Permian to early Triassic voluminous basaltic sediments were eroded from the Emeishan large igneous province, which was emplaced at ca. 260 Ma in southwestern China, into the adjacent basins. These late Permian sedimentary records are studied to understand the denudation of this tropical basalt province in the final period of the late Paleozoic ice age (LPIA). Our data reveal a negative organic carbon isotope excursion, decreasing weathering intensity and deepening erosional loci in the Emeishan basaltic province, and a reduced salinity due to greater rainfall in the middle Wuchiapingian interval. Denudation rate was estimated for the Emeishan province and a correlation of high denudation rates with lowered paleosalinity was documented in the Wuchiapingian. The accelerated denudation in the Emeishan basaltic province was ascribed to ∼80%–130% increase in catchment precipitation during the final phase of the late Paleozoic ice age. This work highlights the importance of sedimentary records to understand the deep time landscape evolution. Key Points: A negative carbon isotope excursion enables middle Wuchiapingian stratigraphic correlations from South China to GondwanaA decrease in weathering intensity and a deepening of erosional exhumation are indicated for the Emeishan basaltic provinceDenudation was accelerated due to ∼80%–130% increase in precipitation during the late Permian in SW China [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Late Paleozoic pillow basalts are well preserved in the Youjiang Basin of SW China. In this study, we conducted geochemical and Sr−Nd isotopic study on the Late Devonian and Late Carboniferous basalts in Napo area, Youjiang Basin. The analyzed samples comprise moderate SiO2, TiO2, Mg#, and REE contents, with slightly positive or negative Eu anomalies, similar to the chemical nature of OIB (Oceanic island basalt). All basalts show low (143Nd/144Nd)i and (87Sr/86Sr)i values, close to EMI-type (I-type Enriched Mantle) magma source. Late Carboniferous basalts display higher (87Sr/86Sr)i, Nb/Th, and lower εNd(t), Zr/Nb values than those of the Late Devonian basalts, implying progressively decreased enrichment components in the magma source processes. Such evolution trend reflects a continuous lithospheric thinning event, supporting a progressive rifting setting of the Youjiang Basin along the southwestern margin of the Yangtze Block in Late Paleozoic. Combined with regional geological background, the Youjiang Basin is viewed as a continental rift basin related to the opening of the Paleo-Tethys Ocean in Late Devonian and became a passive continental margin basin in Carboniferous. The Paleo-Tethys branch ocean probably extended further to the southern Youjiang Basin, likely corresponding to the Song Ma suture zone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Late Paleozoic Taiyuan Formation in North China is mainly composed of a mixed shallow-marine carbonate and terrigenous clastic deposits. Its basal limestones have been constrained in the late Pennsylvanian to Early Permian. To further constrain the age of the lowest Taiyuan Formation, we obtained two genera and 16 species of conodonts from the bottom limestones of the Taiyuan Formation in two sections in Henan Province, southern North China. The fauna includes Idiognathodus hebeiensis, Streptognathodus isolatus, S. elongatus, S. cf. longus, S. acuminatus, S. cf. recreatus, S. cf. cristellaris, S. bellus, S. invaginatus, S. wabaunsensis, S. glenisteri, S. conjunctus, S. binodosus, S. fuchengensis, S. nodulinearis, and S. sp. A genus of Streptognathodus dominated conodont assemblage with some Idiognathodus elements. It indicates a late Gzhelian (latest Pennsylvanian) age for the lowest Taiyuan Formation in southern North China. This is consistent with recently published high-precision zircon U-Pb ages from ash layers. Based on conodont biostratigraphy, the basal limestones of the Taiyuan Formation in Henan Province (southern North China) can be correlated with the upper part of Miaogou limestones of the Taiyuan Formation in Shanxi Province (northern North China). This correlation might reflect a significant sea-level rise in North China, possibly corresponding to a deglaciation event at the Permo-Carboniferous transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Carboniferous-Permian transition is a critical period for the Late Paleozoic Ice Age that evolved from an acme to the subsequent demise with the initiation of long-term drying in low latitudes. During this time interval, extensive epicontinental deposition occurred in North China in the eastern tropical Tethyan region, and archived important information of climate and sea-level changes. Though several high-precision zircon U Pb ages have been reported, they have some conflicts with previously defined biostratigraphic correlations, especially for the Taiyuan Formation. Lack of high-resolution conodont biostratigraphy has impeded the correlation with other well-studied Pangean records. In this study, five conodont zones were established for the successions of the Taiyuan Formation in southern North China. They are Streptognathodus wabaunsensis , S. isolatus , S. sigmoidalis , S. constrictus and S. fusus biozones in ascending order, constraining a late Gzhelian to late Asselian age for the Taiyuan Formation in southern North China, which is consistent with published high-precision zircon U Pb ages. The Unitary Association (UA) analysis was used to reconcile the conodont biostratigraphy of the Taiyuan Formation in North China, and was combined with previously published high-precision U Pb ages to construct a new chronostratigraphic framework for the Carboniferous-Permian strata across North China. It explicitly indicates an earlier initiation of climate aridification in the northern part than in the southern part of North China possibly due to northward drift and/or increased atmospheric p CO 2 and associated global warming. • Conodont biostratigraphy is updated for the Taiyuan Formation in North China. • The age of Taiyuan Formation is constrained in the late Gzhelian to late Asselian. • An Early Permian north-to-south climate drying trend is indicated for North China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Bancheng Formation exposed along the Shiti Reservoir nearby Bancheng Town, Qinfang Basin, southern Guangxi, is mainly composed of thin-bedded chert. The radiolarian assemblages in the studied section suggest it was a pelagic setting and the age of the Bancheng Formation is Late Carboniferous to Early Permian. The detrital zircon U-Pb ages from the section are characterized by a Permian peak at ~282 Ma. Detrital zircon provenance analysis suggests that the Permian detrital zircons in the Bancheng Formation were likely from volcanic-magmatic arc rocks related to the subduction of the Paleo-Tethyan Ocean. The long-lived deposition (from Upper Devonian to Middle Permian, about 125 Ma) of the radiolarian cherts in the Qinfang Basin was comparable with that deposited in Ailaoshan Ocean. The radiolarian assemblages in Qinfang Basin show a Tethyan affinity. Together with the Permian subduction-related arc volcanic rocks and the E-MORB type basalts to the northwest of the study area, our data support the existence of a Permian arc-related basin in the Qinfang area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the Late Paleozoic ice age high-frequency sea level changes at low latitudes have been considered far-field responses to high-latitude Gondwana glacial-deglacial cycles. Previously estimated eustatic amplitudes from low-latitude Pangea range from >80 m to <20 m. To further constrain the amplitude of relative sea level variations, especially for the eastern Tethyan region, we studied the latest Pennsylvanian-early Permian lower Taiyuan Formation in Henan Province of southern North China. Based on detailed field and microfacies analysis of biostratigraphically well-constrained successions, we identified three facies associations including coastal plain, coastal marine, and shallow marine, and revealed four transgression-regression cycles from the lower Taiyuan Formation. Cyclic facies changes, in combination with carbon isotope variations, reflect high-frequency sea level variations in southern North China. A simple 2-dimensional marine transgression model for the studied interval is proposed based on detrital zircon provenance data and correlation to coeval successions. Using the pinning-point method and assuming reasonable depositional slopes, the magnitude of sea-level rise along the transgressive slope in southern North China likely ranged from 16 to 32 m. These estimates largely overlap with the estimates from western equatorial Pangea, and are consistent with modelled sea-level variations arising from orbital forcing. This work helps to constrain the likely astronomical controls on the Late Paleozoic icehouse climate change. • The lower Taiyuan Formation indicates high-frequent glacial sea-level change in the eastern Tethys. • A simple 2-dimensional epicontinental model with possible depositional slopes was established. • The relative sea-level rise along the early Permian transgressive slope in southern North China vary from16 to 32 m. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports LA-ICP-MS zircon U-Pb ages and REE compositions on detrital zircons (Type 1) and hydrothermal zircons (Type 2) from low-metasedimentary rocks in the Mesoproterozoic Gaoyuzhuang Formation, Pingquan area, Hebei Province that provide important constraints on the tectonic evolution along the northern margin of the North China Block. The detrital zircons are characterized by an oscillatory magmatic core, surrounded by a narrow structureless rim in CL images. They yield Pb/Pb ages ranging from 1703 to 2543 Ma with two age peaks at 2473 and 1794 Ma, which is consistent with the Neoarchean and Paleoproterozoic tectono-thermal events recorded in the NCB basement, indicating that the source of the detritus was locally derived. By contrast, the hydrothermal ones are euhedral, sector zoning or internally structureless. They have relatively higher U and Th contents and Th/U ratios (U=139-2918 ppm, Th=35-1327 ppm, Th/U (average) =0.78 vs. U=15-1044 ppm, Th=8-341 ppm, Th/U (average) =0.57 for detrital zircons). Moreover, they are also enriched in REEs relative to detrital zircons and show a lower positive Ce anomaly (ΣREE = 659-2418 ppm vs. 231-611 ppm for detrital zircon; Ce/Ce*=2-13 vs. 33-174 for detrital zircons), similar to known hydrothermal zircons derived from many locations. These characteristics, combined with our field petrographic observations, indicate that the hydrothermal zircons possibly formed from a low temperature aqueous fluid. Twelve concordant or near-concordant analyses on hydrothermal zircons yield weighted mean Pb/U ages of 325-327 Ma, which provide unambiguous evidence that the northern NCB underwent late Paleozoic low temperature hydrothermal modification. This timing of this hydrothermal event is compatible with that of the late Paleozoic magmatic and metamorphic-deformational events occurred on the northern margin of the NCB, it appears likely that the hydrothermal activity resulted from southward subduction of the Paleo-Asian Oceanic plate underneath the NCB during late Paleozoic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Weathering of basalt in tropical environments is sensitive to climate change and considered to play a significant role in regulating climate evolution. Though extensively studied on the modern Earth and hypothesized for the geological past, basalt weathering is difficult to directly track in geological archives. We here focus on the basaltic sediments derived from the Emeishan large igneous province (LIP) in South China and determined their organic carbon content and isotope, mineral and geochemical compositions. Based on the newly obtained high-precision zircon U-Pb age of 251.79 ± 0.12/0.13/0.36 Ma, we establish temporal variations of weathering intensity for the Emeishan LIP basaltic landscapes in the tropical latitudes through the Permo-Triassic rapid climate warming periods. Analysis of weathering trends indicates a significant decrease in weathering intensity across the Permo-Triassic transition. This decrease in intensity is anomalous considering its coincidence with the climate warming at the Permo-Triassic transition, which tends to elevate chemical weathering rate of basalts and produce sediments with high chemical weathering intensity. Combining these weathering trends with present-day basalt weathering-temperature relationship and reported paleo-temperatures, total erosion rate is quantitatively estimated to increase from 282 ± 43 t/km2/yr in the latest Permian to > 1618 ± 187 t/km2/yr in the Early Triassic. This massive erosion in the Early Triassic is plausibly related to amplified extreme precipitation associated with intensification of the hydrological cycle in the Early Triassic hothouse climate. This study underlines the weathering responses of tropical landscapes to rapid climate warming. • One lowest Triassic claystone layer from South China is dated by CA-TIMS method. • Permo-Triassic weathering trends are reconstructed for the Emeishan basaltic province. • Permo-Triassic denudation rate is quantitatively estimated for the Emeishan basaltic province. • Early Triassic accelerated denudation is related to the intensified hydrological cycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The closure of Mianlue Ocean lead to the collisional assembly between the North China Block (NCB) and the South China Block (SCB). But the timing of initial continental collision remains unclear, with the proposed ages ranging from the Late Permian to the Late Triassic. This study presents stratigraphic, sedimentological, tectonic subsidence, and provenance data from the Triassic strata in the Zigui and Dangyang basins lying along the eastern Qinling Orogenic Belt. These data document a tectonic transition in the central northern-SCB, and locally provide constraints on the timing of initial SCB–NCB collision. The Lower Triassic Daye Formation was deposited in a marginal basin to slope environment, and consists of mudrocks containing detrital zircons with major age peaks at ca. 1900 and 850 Ma. The overlying Lower Triassic Jialingjiang Formation comprises a shallowing carbonate sequence, with intercalated evaporites at the top of the formation. It contains mudrocks that are rich in detrital zircons with of ca. 270‐–245 Ma. The mixed carbonate and siliciclastic sequences of the Middle–Upper Triassic Badong Formation records tectonic uplift at its base, and contains detrital zircons with U Pb age peaks at ca. 2500, 1850, 920–800, 450 and 350–220 Ma. Combined with petrographical observations and tectonic subsidence calculation, these detrital zircon U Pb ages record a significant provenance change from recycled material derived from the SCB to newly generated detrital material from the NCB. This provenance change records the initial SCB–NCB collision in the eastern Qinling Orogenic Belt during the Early Triassic. • An Early Triassic provenance change was recognized from the Zigui and Dangyang basins. • These basins started to receive sediments from Qinling Orogen during the late Early Triassic. • Tectonic subsidence analysis denotes a basement uplift in the Middle Triassic • Initial collision between South China and North China in eastern Qinling occurred during the Early Triassic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• An earliest Jurassic provenance change has been recognized in the Zigui Basin in central China. • Late Triassic sediments in the Zigui basin were mainly derived from the South China block. • Early Jurassic sandstones in the Zigui basin denote a volcanic source in the Qingling orogen. • Provenance change was ascribed to the collisional orogensis in the Qinling orogen. The Qinling mountains are situated in central China and mark the collisional assembly between the North and South China blocks. To understand the early Mesozoic evolution of the Qinling orogenic belt, we present new paleocurrent data, sandstone petrology and detrital zircon U-Pb ages for Upper Triassic-Lower Jurassic sedimentary successions in the Zigui Basin in the northern margin of the South China block. The deltaic sandstones in the Upper Triassic Jiuligang Formation have high concentrations of quartz grains and the basal alluvial conglomerates of the Lower Jurassic Tongzhuyuan Formation contain abundant chert gravels with sandy matrixs rich in quartz grains. Both the Upper Triassic sandstones and Lower Jurassic conglomerate have two major detrital zircon U-Pb age groups of 2100–1700 Ma and 950–700 Ma with very few Phanerozoic ages. The overlying fluvial sandstones of the Tongzhuyuan Formation display relative enrichment in volcanic and metamorphic rock fragments. They are characterized by primary zircon U-Pb age groups of 250–200 Ma and 950–700 Ma. Consistent with the northwestward paleocurrents, zircon grains of 2100–1700 Ma and 900–700 Ma were likely derived directly or recycled from the Paleoproterozoic and Neoproterozoic basement of the South China Block, with the latter also possibly sourced from the Qinling orogen. The 250–200 Ma age group is understood to be associated with volcanic rock fragments and, considering the southward paleocurrents, indicates a volcanic source within the Qinling orogen. Along with the increased low-grade metamorphic rock fragments in sandstones, this significant provenance change in the Early Jurassic indicates the initial massive erosion and rapid southward propagation of the south Qinling orogen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Three tuffaceous layers from North China are dated by CA-TIMS method. • Permo-Carboniferous weathering trends are reconstructed for the southern North China. • A rapid climate warming is documented at the Permo-Carboniferous transition. • The climate fluctuation is causally linked to the Skagerrak-Centered large igneous province. Tracking climate change and its relationships with chemical weathering and massive volcanic activity in deep-time greatly improves our understanding of the Earth's climate system. The Permo-Carboniferous period is a critical time interval with million year-scale glacial-deglacial cycles and massive basaltic volcanism, such as the Skagerrak-Centered (also named Skagerrak or Jutland) large igneous province. To explore the volcanism-climate interactions in this period, we obtained high precision CA-TIMS U-Pb zircon ages for three tuffaceous layers from a cored upper Pennsylvanian-lower Permian marginal marine succession in southern North China. These ages calibrate the Permo-Carboniferous biostratigraphy between ∼301–296 Ma in North China. From this dated core succession, mudrock samples and their calculated weathering index values were screened to constrain the weathering trends for the source landscapes and demonstrate a rapid increase with a subsequent decrease in source chemical weathering intensity during the period of ∼299 to 296.5 Ma. These trends coincide with the southern Gondwana glacial records, low latitude temperature changes, relative sea-level variations, and shifts in atmospheric p CO 2 that together document an earliest Permian climate warming-cooling perturbation with a temperature maximum at ∼298 Ma. This climate warming in the Permo-Carboniferous icehouse correlates with the emplacement of the Skagerrak-Centered large igneous province, which likely released voluminous CO 2 that led to climate warming during the Permo-Carboniferous transition. The immediately following cooling could possibly result from the rapid post-eruptional weathering of the massive basaltic rocks of this province in tropical latitudes, which would have sequestered atmospheric CO 2 and promoted return to cooler icehouse conditions. This study supports the assertation that massive basaltic volcanism could first cause rapid climate warming and then may have an overall net cooling effect as previously suggested for the Deccan Traps and the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Document evolving chemical weathering indices in Cryogenian and Ediacaran successions of the Nanhua Basin, South China. • Covariant change of chemical weathering trends in South China and Oman reflects several contemporaneous climate cooling events. • Mean Annual Temperature (MAT) differences reach ~20 ℃ between the Marinoan cryochron and nonglacial interlude at around 30° latitude, and ~12 ℃ between Gaskiers cryochron and nonglacial interlude close to the equator. Three major late Neoproterozoic global cryochrons mark the coldest climate state in Earth history, with glaciers covering most, if not all, continents. However, the terrestrial paleosurface temperature differential between cryochron and nonglacial interlude is unknown. Time-equivalent Cryogenian and Ediacaran sedimentary successions from South China and Oman show multiple negative excursions of the corrected values of their chemical index of alteration (CIA corr). These excursions reflect climate cooling and correlate with the Sturtian, Marinoan and Gaskiers cryochrons. Based on the τ Na -MAT transfer function (sodium chemical depletion index-mean annual temperature), we estimate the temperature differential between Cryogenian cryochron and nonglacial interlude reached 20 ± 5.4 ℃ at around 30° paleolatitude, and 12 ± 5.4 ℃ temperature difference between the Ediacaran cryochron and nonglacial interlude near the equator. The fluctuation of CIA corr and MAT trends within individual cryochrons likely indicate cold-warm climate cycling during the Cryogenian cryochron. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The late Paleozoic Era was an interval of major tectonic and climatic changes, including formation of the supercontinent Pangea and the ~60-Myr-long Late Paleozoic Ice Age (LPIA). Although bauxite formation declined globally from the Carboniferous to the Permian in conjunction with global cooling, it was an interval of widespread bauxite formation in China. In South China, (1) the Jiujialu Formation bauxite deposits in central and northern Guizhou (Zunyi area) are of early-middle Visean age; (2) the Dazhuyaun Formation bauxite deposits in northern Guizhou (Wuchuan–Zheng'an–Daozheng area) to southern Chongqing (Nanchuan area) and southeastern Guizhou (Fuquan–Kaili area) are of Late Pennsylvanian–Early Permian age; and (3) the Heshan Formation bauxite deposits in western Guangxi to Yunnan are of Middle–Late Permian age. In North China, the Benxi Formation bauxite deposits are of Late Mississippian–Middle Pennsylvanian age. The contrasting trends in bauxite metallogenesis between China and the rest of the world imply different climatic patterns in the eastern Tethys (high annual humidity with seasonal dryness) and Pangea (aridification). This hypothesis is further supported by differences in the chemical index of alteration, or CIA (>80 in the eastern Tethys vs. ~50 in western Pangea), and in paleotemperatures (mean annual temperature, or MAT = ~20 °C in the eastern Tethys vs. ~4 °C in western Pangea) determined from Permo-Carboniferous siliciclastic deposits. Permo-Carboniferous bauxite deposits in South China formed in coastal plain and coastal karstic depression environments, in which the position of the groundwater table was related to sea-level changes. During the late Paleozoic, high-frequency eustatic fluctuations caused by waxing and waning of Gondwana icesheets controlled sedimentation in these coastal depositional systems, leading to cyclic accumulation of coal and bauxite deposits and cycles of vadose- and phreatic-type bauxite formation. The results of the present study show that, during interglacial stages, lateritization resulted from high p CO 2 , high sea-level and groundwater-table elevations, low precipitation, and limited vegetation cover, whereas during glacial stages, bauxitization of these ferralitic weathering products was promoted by low p CO 2 , low sea-level and groundwater-table elevations, high precipitation, and more extensive vegetation cover. Thus, a unique combination of geographic, climatic, and eustatic factors accounted for widespread formation of bauxite in South China during the LPIA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Unconformity bound Permo-Triassic successions in the Qinfang Basin, South China Craton, reflect tectonic processes associated with tectonothermal activity along the margins of the craton. The provenance record of these successions, based on modal analysis, geochemical composition, detrital zircon U–Pb ages, and paleocurrent data indicate derivation from the adjoining Precambrian Yunkai massif and surrounding Paleozoic sedimentary units. The quartz dominated nature of the siliciclastic units, along with their high Th/Sc and Zr/Sc ratios indicate a recycled orogen source. Detrital zircons from Late Permian to Early Triassic samples display major age groups at 1100–800Ma, 650–500Ma, 480–420Ma, with subordinate age groups at 2800–2400Ma, 1900–1600Ma and 1400–1200Ma. Late Triassic sandstones show a similar detrital zircon age pattern as well as a 300–250Ma age group. Integration of this provenance data with regional geological information suggests that the unconformity at the base of the Permian succession is related to subduction of the Paleo-Tethys ocean to the south of the craton, whereas the major driver for Triassic tectonic activity corresponds with terrane accretion and the termination of Paleo-Tethys Ocean subduction along the southwest margin of the craton. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Devonian strata in the North Qilian Belt of the Qilian Orogen accumulated in a foreland basin formed through collision between the North China Craton and the Central Qilian Belt. U–Pb age data for 393 detrital zircons from four sandstone samples from the Lower to Middle Devonian Laojunshan Formation and Upper Devonian Shaliushui Formation range in age from 3.6Ga to 0.4Ga and indicate input from a multi-component source. Detrital zircons older than the early Mesoproterozoic (1.4Ga) were likely derived from the North China Craton, whereas late Mesoproterozoic to Neoproterozoic zircons were derived from the Central Qilian Belt. Early Paleozoic zircons were derived from the North Qilian continental arc and associated ophiolites. The occurrence of Neoproterozoic zircons indicates that their source, the Central Qilian Belt, was likely once part of the Yangtze Block of the South China Craton prior to its separation from the craton in the late Neoproterozoic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]