There is still uncertainty in the understanding of the source of the Silurian sedimentation in Tazhong area of Tarim Basin. Using LA-ICP-MS analysis technology, two samples of the Kepingtage Formation in Tazhong area were collected for detrital zircon U-Pb chronology. The results show that the zircons are mainly of magmatic crystallization origin and their ages are mainly distributed in four periods: Early Paleozoic 460-490 Ma, Neoproterozoic 760-1 000 Ma, Paleoproterozoic 1 600-2 200 Ma, and Late Neoarchaean-Early Paleoproterozoic 2 400-2 600 Ma. The Neoproterozoic 760-1 000 Ma detrital zircon ages take the largest proportion (56.8%), with a ~850 Ma single peak. Based on the plate dynamics background of the northern and southern margins of the Tarim plate during the Silurian Period, the analysis of tectonic evolution and geomorphologic features within the basin, as well as the detailed comparison of zircon ages with the potential provenance area, it is proposed that the Tazhong Silurian detrital zircons were mainly sourced from the Tiekelike uplift in the southwest margin of Tarim Basin. © 2021, Editorial Department of Earth Science. All right reserved.
