Reconstruction of the Tarim craton within Rodinia: constraints from magmatic- orogenic records in the Altyn belt

The position of the Tarim craton within the Rodinia supercontinent has long been the focus of scientific debate, with competing models varying from internal to external positions. The Altyn belt in the southeast Tarim margin records an extensive Neoproterozoic magmatic-sedimentary successions which likely recorded the convergence of Tarim to Rodinia. Thus, we here investigated the granitoids exposed in the Kuoshi-Kalaqiaoka and Tula areas in the eastern and western segment of the South Altyn belt. We present new field geology, zircon U–Pb–Hf–O isotopes and H₂O, and whole rock geochemistry data from these granitoids. Zircon U–Pb data yielded ages of 914 ± 3.9 Ma for the Tula granite, 919 ± 5.2 Ma and 932 ± 6.5 Ma for the Kuoshi granite. The Tula and Kalaqiaoka granite samples mostly display high ACNK values that are typical of S-type granitoids, consistent with the presence of Al-rich minerals, such as garnet and muscovite. In addition, the Tula granite have higher zircon δ¹⁸O (7.62 to 10.85‰, peaked at 8.9‰) and lower εHf(t) (-4.0 to +0.3) values, along with lower H₂O content (medium values at 102 and 251 ppmw), indicating that the primary magmas were generated from recycled ancient crust in a water-deficient syn-collisional setting, with minor juvenile contribution. On the other hand, the Kuoshi granite have high Sr (169–259 ppm), Sr/Y (17.85–19.33) and (La/Yb)_N (30–49) ratios that are indicating of adakitic affinity. The Kuoshi granite are also characterized by lower δ¹⁸O (4.15 to 9.81‰, peaked at 8.2‰) and εHf(t) values(−2.4 to 0.6), along with higher H₂O content (medium values at 255 and 795 ppmw) and MgO. These signatures suggest that the Kuoshi pluton was formed by recycling ancient crust and subducted continental crust. Overall, the granitoids across the South Altyn belt reflect a transformation of tectonic regime from water-enriched subduction setting to water-deficient syn-collisional setting. Moreover, the Hf isotopes evolution tend of the early Neoproterozoic granitoids and Suoerkuli Group across the South Altyn belt also suggest a transformation from slab retreat to syn-collision in the early Neoproterozoic. Therefore, overall data and field relations across the Altyn belt indicate an early Neoproterozoic magmatic-sedimentary successions that are similar to that of the Eastern Ghats Belt in India. Given the available paleomagnetic data and detrital zircon age patterns, we conclude a position of the Tarim craton between Australian and North India block in the periphery of Rodinia, close to East Antarctica as well. This research was supported by NSFC Projects (42322208 and 41972238), National Key Research and Development Programs of China (2022YFF0802700 and 2023YFF0803604) and Hong Kong RGC GRF (17308023).