Many sandstone-type uranium mineralization sites have been identified along the north-ern margin of the Qaidam Basin in North China. Intense tectonism and multistage magmatism that oc-curred there have restricted the use of conventional techniques (petrogeochemistry) to deduce the sources of detritus and uranium in these sediments, and to further explore the sandstone-type uranium deposits. In this study, U-Pb geochronological and Hf isotopic analyses were conducted on detrital zir-con grains collected from Jurassic to Paleogene sandstones exposed in the Yuqia area of the Qaidam Basin. The results indicate that the U-Pb ages of the analyzed zircon grains are clustered into four groups, 285–229, 498–401, 999–806, and 2520–2305 Ma. TheεHf(t) of the analyzed zircon grains ranges from-21.9 to+10.5, with two-stage Hf model ages (TDM2) concentrated between 2.1 and 1.3 Ga. Based on paleocurrent studies and results of petrological, detrital zircon geochronology, and Hf isotopic analy-ses, the Jurassic sediments in the Yuqia area were likely derived from the tectonic belt along the north-ern margin of the Qaidam Basin, such as the Qilian Mountains and the Quanji Block. In contrast, the Paleogene sediments were probably sourced from the northern margin of the Qaidam Basin and the Qilian Mountains. The uranium and thorium content and Th/U value of the rock mass and sedimenta-ry strata in the source area show that the Indosinian Early Paleozoic uranium-rich granites and the Middle Jurassic uranium-rich strata of the northern margin of the Qaidam tectonic belt in the source area provide dual uranium sources for the Yuqia sandstone-type uranium mineralization. Therefore, the study area appears to be favorable for sandstone-type uranium mineralization and may have poten-tial for uranium prospecting.

Guangwen Huang;Jiayong Pan;Fei Xia;Jie Yan;Chengyong Zhang;Dehai Wu;Ying Liu

State Key Laboratory of Nuclear Resources and Environment,East China University of Technology,Nanchang 330013,China;Key Laboratory of the Northern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau Geological Processes and Mineral Resources,Xining 810012,China;School of Resources,Environment and Jewelry,Jiangxi College of Applied Technology,Ganzhou 341000,China

地球科学学刊（英文版）

[1]Guangwen Huang;Jiayong Pan;Fei Xia;Jie Yan;Chengyong Zhang;Dehai Wu;Ying Liu-.Provenance of Uranium Mineralization of the Yuqia Area, Northwest China:Constraints from Detrital Zircon U-Pb Geochronology and Hf Isotopes)[J].地球科学学刊（英文版）,2022(06):1549-1570

Yuqia,curred,petrogeochemistry,to+10,paleocurrent,Quanji

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