Detrital zircon of 4.1 Ga in South China

One hadean zircon from the Cambrian sandstone in the southern part of South China has a U-Pb age of 4107±29 Ma with Hf(t) value similar to that of the homochronous depleted mantle and Hf model age of 4102±21 Ma. This demonstrates the existence of hadean crustal remnant in South China. A close match between the U-Pb age and Hf model age with the highly position Hf(t) value indicates the growth and immediate reworking of juvenile crust from the depleted mantle at ca 4.1 Ga. The prominent “Pan-African” and Grenville zircons derived from the exotic sources were also found in the sample, which indicates a linking between South China and Gondwana in the Cambrian period. The southern part of South China has complex histories of crustal growth and tectonic evolution.