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Age constraints of Udayagiri Domain of Nellore Schist Belt by Xenotime dating around Pamuru, Prakasam district, Andhra Pradesh

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Journal of the Geological Society of India

Abstract

The Nellore Schist Belt (NSB) is a curvilinear Archaean schist belt, approximately 350 km long and 8-50 km wide. The Nellore Schist Belt is considered to be equivalent of the Sargur Group with a protolith age of 3.3-2.5Ga. Stratigraphically NSB is classified as the upper western Udayagiri Domain (dominated by metasediments) and lower eastern Vinjamuru Domain (dominated by metabasalts). Metabasalts of Vinjamuru Domain have been dated as of 2654 ± 100 Ma age, but so far no dates are available for the Udayagiri Domain. During recent mapping, in the central western part of NSB, west of Pamuru town, in a metapellite of Udayagiri Domain (consisting mainly of quartz, muscovite, paragonite, Spessartine garnet, chlorite, chloritoid and magnetite as accessory mineral) four small grains of Xenotime has been found, among which three grains have been dated. Xenotime is a rare earth phosphate mineral whose major is Yttrium orthophosphate (YPO4). Xenotime preferentially incorporates smaller HREEs and Yitrium. Xenotime has high U content and very low initial Pb concentration, so it is ideal for U-Pb geochronology. Xenotime can be of different origin such as detrital, diagenetic, hydrothermal and metamorphic. The age calculated from xenotime with the Age Quant of SX-Peak sight software gives an average age of1921±120 Ma. This age matches well with CHIME age of 1929±130 Ma of xenotime. All the textural and geochemical characteristics of the grains suggest that the xenotime is of retrograde metamorphic origin which occurs after D1 phase of deformation, hence constraining the upper age limit of the Udayagiri Domain to be 1929±130 Ma.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Geological Survey of India, SU: AP, SR, Project STM, Hyderabad, 500 068, India

    Sankha Das, Devasheesh Shukla & Sumit Kumar Mitra

  2. EPMA Laboratory, Petrology Division, GSI, SR, Hyderabad, 500 068, India

    Santanu Bhattacharjee

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  1. Sankha Das
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  2. Devasheesh Shukla
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  4. Sumit Kumar Mitra
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Das, S., Shukla, D., Bhattacharjee, S. et al. Age constraints of Udayagiri Domain of Nellore Schist Belt by Xenotime dating around Pamuru, Prakasam district, Andhra Pradesh. J Geol Soc India 85, 289–298 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12594-015-0217-4

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