Origin of the serpentinites in the Lichi mélange, eastern Taiwan, China: implication from petrology and geochronology

Abstract

Lichi mélange, located in the southern coastal range, eastern Taiwan, China, is a typical tectonic mélange of the plate's boundary zone between the Eurasian Plate and the Philippine Sea Plate. It formed during the collision of the Luzon arc with the Eurasian Continent (arc-continent collision). It is composed of sandstone and/or mudstone matrix and many kinds and sizes of rock fragments, including some sedimentary rocks, volcanic rocks and a few metamorphic rocks. The serpentinite is one of the common fragments in the Lichi mélange. By the petrographic characteristics and the zircon U-Pb chronology analyses, protolith of the serpentinite is peridotite, the age is 17.7 ± 0.5 Ma. Taking the tectonic background into account, it is inferred that the serpentinite (serpentinised peridotite) come from the forearc basin (the North Luzon Trough) and was taken into the mélange by a second thrust westwards. The origin of the serpentinite in Lichi mélange is helpful to understand the formation of the Lichi mélange and can provide reliable detailed information for the study of the arc-continent collision orogenic activity in and offshore Taiwan.