Abstract
The Qilian orogenic belt (QOB) located in the northeast margin of the Tibetan Plateau is featured by remarkable crustal thrusting and shortening, providing a key natural example to understand the lithospheric deformation of the Tibetan Plateau. Two types of continental collision are observed in the QOB: lithosphere subduction beneath Southern Qilian and crust underthrusting of Alxa terrain along the North Border Thrust (NBT). Deep seismic reflection profiles reveal complex stress field evolution, including compressional deformation in the lower crust, extensional deformation in the upper crust, and detachment deformation in the middle crust. In this study, we use 2D numerical modeling to investigate the dynamics of these two different collision types and the evolution of Qilian uplift. Model results suggest three patterns of continental collision, i.e., crust underthrusting follows lithosphere subduction, lithosphere subduction and the failed underthrusting/subduction. The key factors that may influence model evolution, including crustal rheology, convergence direction and rate, are systematically investigated. Our model results are further compared to observations, suggesting that lower convergence rate and crust underthrusting along NBT likely control the uplift and crust stress stratification of the QOB.
1 Introduction
The Qilian orogenic belt (QOB) located in the northeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau, far from the continental plate margins, is a typical intracontinental orogenic belt. Its geological history can be divided into three main stages: Paleozoic orogeny, Mesozoic peneplanation, and Cenozoic re-uplift. The Cenozoic uplift of the QOB is primarily attributed to the collision between the Indian and Eurasian plates. This continuous convergence with the northward indentation of the Indian plate drives the outward expansion of the Tibetan Plateau (; ; ). The India-Eurasia collision initiated the early deformation in the Qilian Mountains (; ; ; ), followed by the second collisional event at 20–8 Ma representing the latest crustal shortening and thickening of the Tibetan Plateau (; ; ; ; ; ; ; ). Understanding the lithospheric structures and tectonic evolution of the QOB is essential for understanding the dynamics of the Tibetan Plateau.
High-resolution deep seismic reflection profiles across the Qilian Mountain have demonstrated multi-staged lithospheric structures. Previous studies have presented two significant deep seismic reflection profiles (Figure 1A). The first seismic profile (Figure 1B, MM') located in the Northwestern Qilian Mountain and the Hexi Corridor Basin reveals that the Alxa terrain southward underthrusts along the North Boundary Thrust (NBT) under the Hexi Corridor (; ; ). The second seismic profile (Figure 1B, NN') crosses the central and Southern Qilian, delineating a significant south-dipping fault (Haiyuan Fault) in the mantle lithosphere, which is related to the subduction and closure of the North Qilian Ocean in the Late Paleozoic. This fault was reactivated due to the northward indentation of the Indian plate during the Cenozoic, facilitating lithosphere subduction along the fault and contributing to the uplift of the Qilian Mountains. Under the plate convergence of the Indian plate and Alxa block, the Southern and northern margins of the QOB are undergoing intensive crustal shortening (; ; ), featured by decoupled deformation between the upper and lower crust, i.e., the upper crust is migrating outward while the lower crust is shortening (; ).
FIGURE 1
Based on the lithospheric structure revealed by deep seismic reflection profiles, the Qilian orogen may have experienced lithosphere subduction and crust underthrusting simultaneously. Lithosphere subduction is associated with the re-activation of faults caused by the closure of the North Qilian Ocean. Crust underthrusting caused by southward underthrusting of the Alxa block beneath the Qilian Mountains (Figure 1B). And when the continental collision, the QOB may has experienced two stages of uplift during the Cenozoic. However, the processes by which these two types of continental collision occur in the QOB, the pattern of the QOB uplift, and the formation of crust stratification remain obscure. This study aims to answer this question by linking detailed lithospheric structures revealed by deep seismic reflection profiles to geodynamical modeling. 2D thermos-mechanical models are employed to investigate intracontinental thrusting/subduction based on the QOB.
2 Methods
2.1 Numerical method
We use the 2D thermo-mechanical coupled geodynamic numerical code I2VIS to simulate continental collision (). Finite differences and marker-in-cell techniques are used in the code to solve the conservation equations for mass, momentum and energy:where is velocity, is the deviatoric stress tensor, is the pressure, is the density, is the gravitational acceleration, is the heat capacity, is the temperature. Hs is shear heating, Ha is the adiabatic heating, is the radioactive heating with a constant value for each rock, and HL is the latent heating included implicitly by increasing the effective heat capacity and thermal expansion of the partially crystallized/molten rocks ().
In this study, the visco-plastic rheology is applied. The non-Newtonian viscous rheology is strain rate-, pressure-, and temperature-dependent. Plastic rheology is described by a Drucker–Prager yield criterion, where the yield stress () is pressure dependent ( is rock cohesion and is the effective friction coefficient). Viscosity due to plastic deformation () is computed based on the square root of the second invariant of strain rate (). Eventually, the effective viscosity of rocks () is constrained by both viscous and plastic deformation.
See further explanation of variables/symbols in Table 1.
TABLE 1
| Upper crust | Lower crust | Mantle | Weak zone | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Material | Wet quartzite | Felsic granulite | Plagioclase | Diabase | Mafic granulite | Dry olivine | Wet olivine |
| () | 1.19 × 1017 | 4.97 × 1020 | 4.80 × 1022 | 1.26 × 1024 | 1.13 × 1021 | 3.98 × 1016 | 5.01 × 1020 |
| 2.3 | 3.1 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 4.2 | 3.5 | 4.0 | |
| 1.54 × 105 | 2.43 × 105 | 2.38 × 105 | 2.60 × 105 | 4.45 × 105 | 5.32 × 105 | 4.70 × 105 | |
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.00 | 0.80 | |
| (Pa) | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| C (Pa) | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
| b | 0.2/0.1 | 0.6/0.3 | 0.6/0.3 | 0.6/0.3 | 0.6/0.3 | 0.6/0.6 | 0 |
| b | 0.01/1.01 | 0.5/1.5 | 0.5/1.5 | 0.5/1.5 | 0.5/1.5 | 0.5/1.5 | 0.5/0.5 |
| (kg/) | 2,800 | 2,850 | 2,850 | 2,850 | 2,850 | 3,300 | 3,300 |
| () | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| () | |||||||
| (J/kg/K) | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 | 1,000 |
| b | 0.64 | 1.18 | 1.18 | 1.18 | 1.18 | 0.73 | 0.73 |
| Tb | 8.07e+02 | 4.74e+02 | 4.74e+02 | 4.74e+02 | 4.74e+02 | 12.93e+02 | 12.93e+02 |
| (W/)c | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
Material parameters used in the numerical experiments. aFlow laws: from (; ; ; ) bHeat conductivity is from . cRadioactive heating is from . : initial viscosity, : activation energy, : activation volume, : diffusion-dislocation creep transition stress, : exponent parameter, / : cohesion, : internal friction coefficients, : strain weakening coefficients, : initial density, : thermal expansion, : thermal conductivity, T: thermal conductivity temperature coefficient, : radioactive heat production. All materials were assigned the same values for compressibility: = 1.00e−03 kbar−1 and heat capacity: = 1.00e+03 J/kg.
2.2 Model setup
The initial model setup is shown in Figure 2. The model size is 2,500 km × 450 km, consisting of 401 × 151 numerical nodes distributed unevenly with the highest resolution in the center of the model domain. The grid spacing decreases linearly from 20 km at the edge of the box to 2 km in the center and increases from 1 km at the top to 5 km at the bottom of the model. The model has several layers, from top to bottom: “sticky air”, continental crust, mantle lithosphere, and asthenosphere. The crust and mantle lithosphere are 40 km and 80 km thick, respectively, as observed in the Qilian region (; ; ). With fixed crust thickness, the lower crust thickness is gradually increased from 10, 15, 20, to 25 km. A crustal-scale weak zone was established on the right side of the model to represent the NBT (Figure 1B, profile MM'; Figure 2), and a lithospheric-scale weak zone is incorporated into the model on the left side (Figure 1B, profile NN'; Figure 2). These two weak zones are set up based on deep seismic observations and previous studies (Gao et al., 2022).
FIGURE 2
We set a 20 km thick layer with ‘sticky air' at the top of the model domain, approximating the free surface. Our surface process is highly simplified and uses gross-scale erosion/sedimentation rates which are independent of local elevation and topography slopes (). We use a moderate erosion/sedimentation rate (0.315 mm/yr) which falls within naturally observed ranges.
Velocity boundary conditions are free-slip on all boundaries. We prescribed internal boundary velocities to drive plate convergence (Figure 2A). The initial temperature distribution of the lithosphere is uniform and zero-flux across the vertical boundaries. The initial temperatures on the crustal surface, Moho, and the lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (LAB) are 0°C, 450°C, and 1,300°C, respectively. Temperature increases linearly in the crust and mantle lithosphere. Beneath the LAB, the temperature gradient is prescribed as 0.5°C/km.
3 Model results
We conduct a series of models to simulate the continental collision along the imposed pre-existing weak zones. Based on the model results, three patterns of continental collision are recognized: 1) crust underthrusting follows the lithosphere subduction, 2) lithosphere subduction, and 3) failed underthrusting/subduction.
3.1 Crust underthrusting follows the lithosphere subduction
The first pattern is characterized by two modes of continental collision (Figure 3), i.e., lithosphere subduction initiated first beneath Southern Qilian and crust underthrusting of Alxa terrain along the NBT. In the beginning, strain localized along two pre-existing weak zones, and the lithosphere subduction forms quickly. Under continuous convergence, the thrust fault around NBT evolves to the crust underthrusting (Figure 3A). A remarkable feature of this pattern is the decoupled deformation between the upper and lower crust. The upper crust migrates northward and shortens significantly, while the lower crust slowly moves (Figure 3B), analogous to natural observations ().
FIGURE 3
3.2 Lithosphere subduction
By testing different lower crust strengths, such as decreasing lower crust thickness will be weaker and more mafic rheology will be stronger, we obtain the Mode 2 models. This pattern only shows one lithosphere subduction. In terms of the subduction initiates along which pre-existing weak zone, we categorized the models into Mode 2A and Mode 2B. Mode 2A and 2B show the lithosphere subduction beneath Southern Qilian or NBT, respectively (Figures 4, 5). Compared to the Mode 1, strain localized rapidly along pre-existing weak zones. When the strain is localized successfully in one of those weak zones, negligible deformation will be observed in the other weak zones.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 5
3.3 Failed crust underthrusting/lithosphere subduction
A few models failed to generate underthrusting/subduction. The typical evolution of this mode is shown in Figure 6. In the early stage, strain localized and formed thrusting faults near the NBT due to the strong lower crust (Figure 6A). However, with further model evolution, it fails to form underthrusting/subduction, instead, it forms lithospheric thickening due to two-sided convergence. Crustal deformation is also seen in Southern Qilian, mainly because subduction fails to initiate along the NBT. Compared with the subduction cases, failed cases are mainly promoted by a lower convergence rate and weak continental crust (Figure 7).
FIGURE 6
FIGURE 7
3.4 Two-sided convergence
Based on the aforementioned models with one-sided plate convergence, we increase the right plate velocities to investigate the effect of two-sided convergence (Figure 7). We increase the right plate velocities to the aforementioned model results, three types of model evolution are observed in this set of models, i.e., crust underthrusting follows the lithosphere subduction, lithosphere subduction, and failed underthrusting/subduction. However, changes in lithospheric deformation due to double-direction convergence are still observed. The right plate velocity dramatically affects model evolution. Lower right plate velocities and relatively lower convergence rates favor the crust underthrusting form, which follows the lithosphere subduction (Figure 7A). While higher right plate velocities and a large convergence rate from the right boundary promote the formation of lithosphere subduction (Figures 7B, C).
3.5 Model parameter effect
The thickness of the crust and the rheological properties of the lower crust can influence the initiation of intracontinental subduction (). We systematically tested the crustal strength by varying the thickness and rheology of the lower crust (Figure 8A). In our model, the total crustal thickness is constant (i.e., 40 km), while the tested lower crustal thickness gradually changes from 10, 15, 20, and 25 km. Besides, varied lower crustal rheology (i.e., felsic granulite, plagioclase, diabase, mafic granulite) is tested. Model results show that crustal strength affects the pattern of intracontinental subduction. The formation of Mode 1 or 2 depends on strain localization, i.e., occurring fast in Southern Qilian or along the NBT. With a weak lower crust, characterized by a thin lower crust and felsic rheology, models favor the formation of crust underthrusting following lithosphere subduction. In such models, strain localization is hard to form along the NBT, resulting in a relatively more distributed stress distribution. With continuous plate convergence, deformation concentrates along the Qilian faulting zone, initiating intracontinental subduction and prompting the migration of crustal shortening into the plate's interior. On the contrary, with high crustal strength, characterized by more mafic and thicker lower crust, lithospheric deformation is prone to localize in the NBT, resulting in lithosphere subduction.
FIGURE 8
The convergence rate of Indian plate subduction is 5–20 cm/yr (). Previous study indicates that the southward underthrusting of Alxa terrane influences the QOB. However, the magnitude of underthrusting influence has not yet been determined. And high convergence rate will promote strain localization and will influence shear heating (), which may influence the intracontinental underthrusting. Thus, to systematically test the influence of convergence rate, we change the internal boundary velocity to test varied convergence rates 1, 1.5, 2.0, and 2.5 cm/yr with a lower crust thickness of 20 km. The model results are shown in Figure 8B. With the convergence rate of 0.5 cm/yr, strain localization becomes difficult and fails to form underthrusting/subduction in the models. Increase the convergence rate, crust underthrusting occurs in the models. When we use more mafic lower crust, with the same convergence rate, the lithosphere subduction occurs.
Different directions of convergence result in different deformation patterns and different subduction polarities (; ; ). In the additional models with two-sided plate convergence, the right plate velocities are systematically tested while the left plate velocities maintain constant (Figures 2A, 8C). Modeling results show that as the convergence rate increases, the position of lithosphere subduction initiation shifts from the NBT to the Qilian Thrust system (Figure 8C). However, the crust underthrusting following lithosphere subduction is difficult to form, and only one tested model forms this deformation type. Thus, compared to the single-direction convergence models, the models with two-sided plate convergence do not favor the formation of crust underthrusting along NBT following lithosphere subduction, and thus could not be applied to the QOB.
4 Discussion
4.1 Model comparison
We compare model results through topography and stress fields (Figure 9). The regions dominated by extensional or compressional stress are distinguished in the plots. In the early stage of these two modes, strain localized along pre-existing weak zones, compressional stress dominates all mode types (Figures 9B, G). When lithosphere subduction initiates along the Southern Qilian, the upper crust shows extensional stress and starts to migrate (Figures 9C, D). When the crust underthrusting along NBT, Mode 1 shows significant crustal stress stratification, but Mode 2a does not (Figures 9D, I). The notable difference is the lower crust compressional stress state and the shortening deformation, which indicates the main reason for crustal stress stratification is crust underthrusting. Moreover, the topographic uplift of the Mode 1 is relatively higher than Mode 2a. Differences in topography are mainly due to the shortening of lower crust. Compared with the observation of deep seismic reflection profiles (Figure 1), the evolution of Mode 1 is similar to the deformation pattern of the QOB.
FIGURE 9
4.2 Comparison between simulation and observation
The tectonic uplift and evolution history of the Qilian Mountain can be explained based on the model results. Following the closure of the Proto-Tethys Ocean and the commencement of continental collision, the interior of the Tibetan Plateau was subjected to the northward indentation of the Indian Plate (Figure 10A). The far-field compression stress exerted by the Indian plate led to the reactivation of two pre-existing faults. Subsequently, lithosphere subduction initiated beneath the Southern Qilian, and crust underthrusting occurred along the NBT (Figure 10B). The processes of underthrusting and subduction result in significant uplift in the Qilian Mountains. In the absence of the Alxa terrain underthrusting, the uplift of the Qilian Mountains would be significantly reduced (Figure 9). Accordingly, based on the model results, the crust underthrusting favors the uplift and the crust stress stratification. Besides, our model results suggest that the multiple intracontinental subduction in the Qilian orogenic belt primarily results from plate convergence from the south.
FIGURE 10
5 Conclusion
Based on the constraints from the deep seismic reflection profiles of the QOB, we conducted a 2D thermo-mechanical coupled numerical modeling. We investigate continental collision and surface uplift in the Qilian Mountain from the Cenozoic. We obtained the following conclusions.
(1) Three patterns of continental collision are recognized, i.e., crust underthrusting follows lithosphere subduction, lithosphere subduction beneath Southern Qilian or along NBT, and failed underthrusting/subduction.
(2)The controlling effect of crustal rheology on model evolution was recognized, i.e., the felsic lower crust promotes the formation of crust underthrusting following lithosphere subduction. A lower convergence rate allows the crust to underthrust along NBT.
(3) Two-sided convergence influences the model evolution. A lower convergence rate from the right plate favors the crust underthrusting along NBT, which indicates that the uplift of the QOB is likely driven by southern compressional convergence.
(4) The presence of crust underthrusting along NBT leads to the crustal stress stratification between the upper and lower crust. And crust underthrusting along NBT promotes the uplift of the QOB.
Statements
Data availability statement
The original contributions presented in the study are included in the article/supplementary material, further inquiries can be directed to the corresponding authors.
Author contributions
HZ: Writing–original draft, Writing–review and editing, Data curation, Formal Analysis, Methodology. JQ: Data curation, Methodology, Writing–original draft. RQ: Data curation, Writing–review and editing, Methodology. XH: Data curation, Writing–review and editing, Formal Analysis. JL: Supervision, Writing–review and editing, Methodology. RG: Funding acquisition, Methodology, Supervision, Writing–review and editing.
Funding
The author(s) declare that financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This work was financially supported by the Second Tibetan Plateau Scientific Expedition and Research Program (STEP) [Grant numbers 2019QZKK0701]; the National Natural Science Foundation of China [Grant numbers 41904083, 41590683]; and the Pearl River Talent Recruitment Program of Guangdong Province, China [Grant number 2017ZT07Z066].
Acknowledgments
We thank the anonymous reviewer for their constructive comments and suggestions.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
Publisher’s note
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.
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Summary
Keywords
Qilian orogenic belt, lithosphere subduction, crust underthrusting, deep seismic reflection profile, geodynamic numerical modeling
Citation
Zhou H, Qing J, Qi R, Huang X, Liao J and Gao R (2024) Geodynamic modeling on continental collision in Qilian orogenic belt. Front. Earth Sci. 12:1456165. doi: 10.3389/feart.2024.1456165
Received
28 June 2024
Accepted
07 August 2024
Published
20 August 2024
Volume
12 - 2024
Edited by
Xintong Dong, Jilin University, China
Reviewed by
Yangming Wu, Shantou University, China
Liang Liu, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), China
Updates
Copyright
© 2024 Zhou, Qing, Qi, Huang, Liao and Gao.
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
*Correspondence: Rui Qi, qirui9@tsinghua.edu.cn; Rui Gao, gaorui66@mail.sysu.edu.cn
Disclaimer
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.