Lead ages, reset rubidium-strontium ages and implications for the Archaean crustal evolution of the Diemals area, Central Yilgarn Block, Western Australia

The Pb-Pb whole-rock geochronology of Archaean granitic and gneissic rocks from the Diemals area in the Central Yilgarn granite-greenstone terrain provides important constraints on crustal evolution. The regionally extensive banded gneisses, previously considered as candidates for basement to the greenstones give a Pb-Pb whole-rock age of 2700 +- 97 Ma. This is within error of previously published Rb-Sr and Sm-Nd gneiss ages and also within error of the Sm-Nd ages on the greenstones in the Eastern Goldfields Province. Two synkinematic plutons give Pb-Pb whole-rock ages and Pb isotopic compositions consistent with the hypothesis, based on field and geochemical relations, that these plutons were derived by partial melting of the precursors to the banded gneisses. Assuming this, the combined data date the melting event at 2723 +- 25 Ma with a model source μ value of 8.18 +- 0.02. This source μ value is close to the range postulated for mantle values and restricts the crustal history of the precursors to less than approx. 200 Ma. A post-kinematic pluton with a whole-rock Pb-Pb age of 2685 +- 26 Ma and μ value of 8.26 +- 0.02 puts a younger limit on this relatively short lived crustal accretion-differentiation event. (author)