
Weidong SunInstitute of Oceanology · Center of Deep Sea Research
Weidong Sun
PhD
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566
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Introduction
Expert in the field of marine geology and geochemistry with research interests that include: the behavior of elements during plate subduction and convergent margin magmatism, ore formation processes at convergent margins, and plate tectonics. Published more than 400 peer reviewed papers so far, including Nature (2), PNAS (1), The Innovation (2), Science Bulletin (14), Science Advances (1), Nature Communications (4), GCA (27), EPSL (8), Geology (5), Chemical Geology (20).
Publications
Publications (566)
Atmospheric oxygen has evolved from negligible levels in the Archean to the current level of about 21% through 2 major step rises: The Great Oxidation Event (GOE) in the early Proterozoic and the Neoproterozoic Oxygenation Event (NOE) during the late Proterozoic. However, most previous methods for constraining the time of atmospheric oxygenation ha...
Over the Earth's evolutionary history, the style of plate subduction has evolved through time due to the secular cooling of the mantle. While continuous subduction is a typical feature of modern plate tectonics, a stagnant-lid tectonic regime with localized episodic subduction likely characterized the early Earth. The timing of the transition betwe...
A relationship between convergent margin magmas and copper-gold ore mineralization has long been recognized. The nature of the genetic link is controversial, particularly whether the link is due to high-oxygen-fugacity (fO2) melts and fluids released from subducted slabs or to brine exsolution during magmatic evolution. For submarine, subduction-re...
Variations in the 187Os/188Os isotopic signature of mantle and mantle-derived rocks have been thought to provide a powerful chemical tracer of deep Earth structure. Many studies have inferred from such data that a long-lived, high-rhenium component exists in the deep mantle (187Re is the parent isotope decaying to 187Os, with a half-life of approxi...
Determining the evolutionary history of mantle oxygen fugacity (fo2) is crucial, as it controls the fo2 of mantle-derived melts and regulates atmospheric composition through volcanic outgassing. However, the evolution of mantle fo2 remains controversial. Here, we present a comprehensive dataset of plume-derived komatiites, picrites, and ambient man...
Interactions between multiple‐scale thermochemical heterogeneities in the lowermost mantle, specifically ultralow velocity zones (ULVZs) and large low shear velocity provinces (LLSVPs), are critical in lower mantle dynamics. However, the evolution of ULVZs formed outside LLSVPs has not been thoroughly explored. Here we perform two‐dimensional numer...
Plate tectonics drives the compositional diversity of Earth’s convecting mantle through subduction of lithosphere. In this context, the role of evolving global geodynamics and plate (re)organization on the spatial and temporal distribution of compositional heterogeneities in the convecting mantle is poorly understood. Here, using the geochemical co...
On the Hadean Earth immediately after the Magma Ocean period, the proto-atmosphere mainly consists of water (H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen (N2)[1, 2, 3,4]. Meanwhile, Earth’s surface was covered by ultramafic rocks and iron meteorites that can react with H2O to provide abundant hydrogen (H2)[3, 4], which suggests that carbon dioxide hydro...
Aromatic compounds have been detected by the Curiosity and Perseverance rovers suggesting their familiar presence on the Martian surface.1 These organic compounds were previously attributed to water-rock reactions. However, according to our
knowledge, no experimental or theoretical evidence substantiates the formation of aromatic compounds purely t...
The deep water cycle is pivotal in shaping Earth’s habitable environments. A fundamental process of this cycle is upward migration of water from Earth’s deep interior. A significant inquiry concerns how water released from the deep mantle hydrates the lithosphere. Here we report hydrothermal experiments of the “phlogopite + H 2 O” system, showing t...
Metal complexation and speciation is the primary process responsible for metal transport and circulation in hydrothermal systems, during which stable and soluble metal complexes play a pivotal role. Here, we investigate the speciation of Os and the thermodynamic stability of Os(IV)‐Cl complexes in chloride‐bearing solutions at temperatures ranging...
The proto-atmosphere serves as a crucial starting point for the carbon cycle. Estimations based on atmospheric data from Mars and Venus suggest that Earth’s proto-atmosphere contained >110 bar of CO2 and >2.6 bar of nitrogen. The proto-atmosphere had over 1000 bar of water vapor during the magma ocean stage, assuming the proto-ocean had a volume of...
Natural carbonatite is associated with various types of deposits, including rare earth elements (REEs) and high-field strength elements (e.g., Nb). Although the spatial relationship between fluorine enrichment and the formation of carbonatite-type deposits is well-established, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. In this study, we investigate...
原始大气是碳循环的重要起点。利用火星和金星的大气数据估算,地球原始大气含有>110个大气压的CO2和>2.6个大气压的氮气。在岩浆海阶段,地球获得水之后,原始大气有超过1000个大气压的水蒸气。此时气-岩界面,水和二氧化碳均处于超临界状态,与岩浆海表面发生强烈的蛇纹石化反应,形成大量的氢,将氮气还原为氨气;将二氧化碳还原为甲烷,同时形成碳酸盐。甲烷、氨气和氢主导的原始大气在闪电的作用下形成大量氨基酸,为生命起源奠定了基础,也控制了地球早期的碳-氮循环。到冥古宙,大量CO2以碳酸盐和有机物的形式被固定下来,之后主要通过地幔倒转或者板块俯冲进入深部地幔。碳酸盐在地幔转换带发生“还原固定”(Redox freezing),在熔体中被二价铁还原转化为金刚石。在下地幔,Fe2+发生歧化反应,形成Fe3...
Biogeochemical Si cycle in coastal areas is of vital importance due to its close link with the carbon cycle. However, the coastal Si cycle has been heavily perturbated by human activities. In this study, we studied the spatiotemporal distribution of biogenic Si (BSi) and dissolved Si (DSi) combined with stable Si isotopes of DSi (δ³⁰SiDSi) in the Y...
Continental brines and Li-enriched pegmatites are two primary lithium resources nowadays, with the former concentrated from streams derived from the weathering of subaerial crust or springs derived from the crust-fluid interaction in high temperature, and the latter highly fractionated from the crustal sediment-derived melts as Li-enriched hard roc...
Porphyry-type deposits in the shallow crust (3-5 km) are formed from metal-rich fluids exsolved from underlying magma chambers (5-15 km). However, a direct volatile record of the fluid exsolution in the magma chamber is commonly lacking. Here, we analyse the compositions of apatite inclusions (in biotite and plagioclase phenocrysts, and fully-/part...
Hydrothermal alteration of olivine greatly influences geodynamics and the recycling of volatiles (such as water and carbon) in subduction zones. Silica is an important component of geological fluids, and its influence on the hydrothermal alteration of olivine remains poorly constrained. In this study, we performed experiments at 300–515°C and 3.0 k...
The mechanism behind the destabilization of the North China Craton (NCC) remains a contentious topic among researchers. Large-scale Cretaceous adakitic magmatism in the NCC offers insights into the decratonization process. This study focuses on the Huashan and Laoniushan plutons located in the Lesser Qinling on the southern margin of the NCC and co...
Glacial diamictite may provide important information on paleoenvironment and average composition of the upper continental crust (UCC). In this study, we report sedimentary facies, petrological and geochemical characteristics of Neoproterozoic diamictite from a profile of the Luoquan Formation on the southern margin of the North China Block (NCB). U...
The Earth's atmosphere was changed from CO2 + N2 to CH4 + NH3 through serpentinization, which is essential for the origin of life
Porphyry Mo deposits are important suppliers of molybdenum for industrial applications, but the origin and source of metals in these deposits remain debated. Here, we present Mo isotope data for Miocene mineralized porphyritic monzogranites (MPMs) and Paleocene barren biotite monzogranites and tuffs (BMTs) from the Bangpu porphyry Mo (Cu) deposit i...
Late Cretaceous granitoids are developed in the eastern and western districts of the Gejiu ore district, but tin deposits mainly occur in the eastern district, and the reasons for the difference in mineralization between the eastern and western districts are still controversial. Considering the main factors controlling granite Sn fertility, the who...
At the beginning of the Cenozoic, the atmospheric CO2 concentration increased rapidly from ~2000 ppmv at 60 Ma to ~4600 ppmv at 51 Ma, which is 5–10 times higher than the present value, and then continuous declined from ~51 to 34 Ma. The cause of this phenomenon is still not well understood. In this study, we demonstrate that the initiation of Ceno...
Soil erosion in East and Southeast Asia is believed to have increased significantly since the regional economic boom of the 1970s–1980s. However, limited records of soil erosion make it difficult to understand and indeed verify such changes. Here we present two new monthly resolved Ba/Ca records from Porites coral skeletons from southern Taiwan and...
The Hawaiian-Emperor seamount chain has shown two subparallel geographical and geochemical volcanic trends, Loa and Kea, since ∼5 Ma, for which numerous models have been proposed that usually involve a single mantle plume sampling different compositional sources of the deep or shallow mantle. However, both the dramatically increased eruption rate o...
The serpentinized mantle wedge is critical for the geochemical cycling of water, volatiles, and fluid-mobile elements in the subduction zone. It is also a major reservoir of magnesium (Mg) in subduction zones, but its Mg isotopic compositions are still not well constrained. To investigate Mg isotopic fractionation during mantle wedge serpentinizati...
We conducted hydrothermal experiments at 300°C and at pressure varying from 2.2 to 3.4 kbar to study the effect of fluid salinity on the coupling between molecular hydrogen (H2) formation and olivine serpentinization, where peridotite and olivine with 25–50 μm of starting grain sizes were reacted with pure H2O and saline solutions (0.5, 1.5, and 3....
Ridge subduction usually has significant influences on the tectonics, magmatic activity and mineralization of the overriding plate because of its special thermal and topographic structures. The Neo-Tethys is a vanished ancient ocean, and thus, its spreading ridge must have been subducted beneath the Eurasian continent. However, where and when the s...
Magnetic anomalies show that the Pacific plate rotated counterclockwise by ~50��, induced by the eruption of the Ontong Java Plateau at ~125 Ma. Meanwhile, the drifting direction of the Pacific plate also changed from southwestward (~265��) to northwestward (~300��). The rotation promoted the destruction of the North China Craton (NCC) and induced...
The origin of the Dexing porphyry Cu deposit is hotly debated. Zircon and apatite are important accessory minerals that record key information of mineralization processes. SHRIMP zircon U-Pb analyses of granodiorite porphyries yield ages of 168.9 ± 1.2 Ma, 168.0 ± 1.0 Ma, and 172.8 ± 1.3 Ma, whereas zircons in the volcanic rocks of the Shuangqiaosh...
The circum-Pacific convergent margin is known as “the Ring of Fire”, with abundant volcano eruptions. Large eruptions are rare but very disastrous. It remains obscure how are large explosive volcanos formed and where are the danger zones. Three largest eruptions since 1900, the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai, the Mt. Pinatubo, and the Novarupta were fou...
The temperature of the convecting mantle exerts a first-order control on the rheology, composition, and consequently, tectonic behavior of Earth's lithosphere. Although the mantle has likely been cooling since the Archaean eon, how mantle temperature has evolved thereafter is poorly understood. Here, we apply a statistical analysis to secular chang...
The world-class Dachang Sn-polymetallic district, South China, is a magmatic-hydrothermal deposit closely associated with the Late Cretaceous Longxianggai pluton, which is primarily composed of porphyritic and equigranular (from medium-grained, to medium- to fine-grained, and then fine-grained textures) biotite granites. However, the magmatic and p...
Plate subduction links the Earth’s surface and interior and reshapes the redox state of the Earth’s mantle. Mantle wedges above subduction zones have high oxygen fugacity compared with other mantle reservoirs, but the cause is debated. Here we analyse high-pressure metamorphic rocks derived from ferromanganese pelagic sediments in the Qilian subduc...
Ocean circulation transports heat, salt and nutrients, and has profound impacts on the marine environment and climate change. However, the seasonal to centennial variations of the paleocirculation of the South China Sea (SCS) and their driving forces are still unclear due to limited records. Here we reconstructed a high-resolution Δ¹⁴C record of a...
The Fangshan intrusive suite is a composite pluton in the North China Craton that resulted from incremental assembly of small magma batches. The pluton consists of four intrusive units with abundant mafic enclaves. Here we clarify its crystallisation history through zircon UPb dating, which indicates prolonged crystallisation of each intrusive unit...
The interactions between arc-continent collision and subduction zones are still poorly understood. Here, we use 2D seismic data to document upper plate deformational features and identify different structural styles along the New Guinea Trench, western Pacific, and discuss their broader significance. In the western section, normal faults and negati...
Skarn Au deposits are particularly developed along Middle and Lower Yangtze River region, eastern China, but gold behavior and genesis of the skarn Au deposits remain unclear. Whole-rock geochemical, sulfur isotopic and in-situ mineralogical data from the mineralized alteration stages of Chaoshan skarn Au deposit in Tongling region are systemically...
Late Mesozoic magmatism in eastern China was extensive and closely related to the subduction of the Paleo-Pacific plate, but genetic relationship between magmatism and subduction remains unclear. Cretaceous magmatic rocks distributed along the eastern coast of China can provide an opportunity to evaluate the influence of subduction on the evolution...
Whether or not oceanic crust basalts are affected by plate subduction is a hot topic of debate. The South China Sea is one of the largest marginal basins in the western Pacific Ocean and has been surrounded by subduction of the Pacific plate and Indian plate, yet, to date, no study has clearly shown evidence of subduction in the geochemistry of vol...
Chinese Loess Plateau (CLP) is the largest loess deposit on the Earth with expansive surface-exposed source rocks of varying origin, age, and history. We present elemental abundances on representative loess and paleosol samples from seven classic sections of the CLP. Most elements, including soluble elements (e.g., Rb and Cs), show significant corr...
About 45% of tungsten, ∼20% of tin, and ∼9% of fluorite of known world reserves are associated with Late Mesozoic igneous rocks, Southeast (SE) China. Here we demonstrate that Fogang granite, the largest inland batholith, is mainly of A2-type that is commonly found in post-orogenic settings and experienced plate subduction induced metasomatism. In...
Early Cretaceous A-type granitic plutons are widely distributed in Shandong Peninsula, which are of great significance to understanding the regional tectonic evolution. Here we report geochemical characteristics, geochronological results, and zircon Hf-O isotope compositions of Wulian granites to reveal its origin and geological significance. Wulia...