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The properties and tectonic significance of the fault bound zone on the northern margin of the Central Tianshan belt are key issues to understand the tectonic framework and evolutionary history of the Tianshan Orogenic Belt. Based on the geological and geochemical studies in the Tianshan orogenic belt, it is suggested that the ophiolitic slices found in the Bingdaban area represent the remaining oceanic crust of the Early Paleozoic ocean between the Hazakstan and Zhungaer blocks. Mainly composed of basalts, gabbros and diabases, the ophiolites were overthrust onto the boundary fault between the Northern Tianshan and Central Tianshan belts. The major element geochemistry is characterized by high TiO2 (1.50%–2.25%) and MgO (6.64%–9.35%), low K2O (0.06%–0.41%) and P2O5 (0.1%–0.2%), and Na2O>K2O as well. Low ΣREE and depletion in LREE indicate that the original magma was derived from a depleted mantle source. Compared with a primitive mantle, the geochemistry of the basalts from the Bingdaban area is featureded by depletion in Th, U, Nb, La, Ce and Pr, and unfractionated in HFS elements. The ratios of Zr/Nb, Nb/La, Hf/Ta, Th/Yb and Hf/Th are similar to those of the typical N-MORB. It can be interpreted that the basalts in the Bingdaban area were derived from a depleted mantle source, and formed in a matured mid-oceanic ridge setting during the matured evolutionary stage of the Northern Tianshan ocean. In comparison with the basalts, the diabases from the Bingdaban area show higher contents of Al2O3, ΣREE and HFS elements as well as unfractionated incompatible elements except Cs, Rb and Ba, and about 10 times the values of the primitive mantle. Thus, the diabases are thought to be derived from a primitive mantle and similar to the typical E-MORB. The diabases also have slight Nb depletion accompanying no apparent Th enrichment compared with N-MORB. From studies of the regional geology and all above evidence, it can be suggested that the diabases from the Bingdaban area were formed in the mid-oceanic ridge of the Northern Tianshan ocean during the initial spreading stage.

The Turpan-Hami and Santanghu basins are the late Paleozoic-Mesozoic-Cenozoic reworked intracontinental basins that superposed on the folded basement of the Paleozoic orogenic belt. 40Ar/39Ar geochronological study of the basalts developed in the basins reveals that the formation period is Permain (293—266 Ma). From geochemical comparison of the basalts, the Santanghu basalts exhibit a strong depletion in Nb and Ta, and a selective enrichment in HFSE, reflecting that the source region is influenced by the subducted components related to subduction of the ancient oceanic crust and characterized with “lagged arc volcanic rocks”. In contrast, the Turpan-Hami basalts show a slight depletion in Nb and Ta, high Th/Ta ratio, similar to the basalts formed in an intracontinental ex-tensional zone or in an initial rift. Combined with the formation period of the ophiolite and ophiolite melange zones and regional magmatic activities occurring on the post-orogenic extensional back-ground in northern Xinjiang, it can be inferred from these geochemical characteristics that the tectonic background for forming the Turpan-Hami and Santanghu basins is closely related to the regional ex-tension after the continent-continent collisional orogeny. The basalts of the two basins came from different sources on the post-orogenic extensional background of the similar basin-forming dynamics. Although the settings are all intracontinental rift, the source for the Santanghu basalts is obviously subjected to the metasomatism of the subducted components, implying the existence of the previous subduction.

A comprehensive study on geothermal history of the Turpan-Hami Basin by vitrinite reflectance, fluid inclusion geothermometry, apatite fission track and40Ar-39Ar dating displays that the main effects influencing geotemperature distribution are burial depth of the basement, heat flow, magmatic activities, as well as tectonic movement, having a rugulation to be higher in the east and north, lower in the west and south, as well as higher in the past and lower at the present. The heat of the mantle source and the Indo-China tectonic thermal event have extremely influenced maturation of source rocks of the upper Lower Permian and the Middle and Upper Triassic in the lndo-China epoch. While, the geothermal gradient and the weak tectonic geothermal event of the Early Yanshan Movement provided necessary heat for the maturation of source rock in coal-bearing strata of the Middle and Lower Jurassic.

The geochemistry of the basic volcanic rocks at the south margin of the Qinling orogenic belt (SMQOB) suggests that they were formed in an intraplate tectonic setting. The REE distribution patterns show these rocks are strongly enriched in LREE with high ∑REE, and their trace elements geochemistry is similar to that of continental flood basalt. All the above evidence suggests that the Caledonian basic volcanic rocks in the SMQOB were tholeiitic basalts formed in an intraplate spreading-initial rift tectonic setting. The characteristics of regional geology and geochemistry indicate that there was an intraplate spreading-rift tectonic setting between the South Qinling block and the Yangtze block in the Caledonian epoch. The dynamic spreading in this district began in the Early Caledonian and then the intraplate spreadinginitial rifts were formed in the Late Caledonian. As a result of spreading of the Tethys and geodynamic processes in deep mantle, the Mianlue-Huashan oceanic basin was formed between the Qinling block and the Yangtze block in Devonian, and the Qinling microplate was separated from the northern part of the Yangtze plate.

The Danfeng meta-volcanics in the Shangzhou area, Shaanxi Province are characterized by oceanic island arc volcanic geochemistry. They are a suite of low-K tholeiitic series and calc-alkaline series meta-volcanic rocks derived from different sources respectively. These meta-volcanics have high Th/Ta ratios and low contents of Ni, Ta, Ti, Y and Yb, suggesting that they were influenced by the subduction zone components. Many lines of evidence show that the Danfeng meta-volcanics were produced in an oceanic island are setting of the supra-subduction zone at the southern margin of the North China Block during the Early Paleozoic.