Mesozoic–Cenozoic evolution and mechanism of tectonic geomorphology in the central North China Block: Constraint from apatite fission track thermochronology

• Three significant cooling events took place during the Mesozoic–Cenozoic era.
• The first cooling event at the Late Jurassic corresponded to the uplift of the Yanshanian North China Plateau.
• The second cooling event at the early Paleogene was caused by the formation of the Bohai Bay Basin.
• The third one at the Miocene was attributed to Miocene thermal subsidence of the Bohai Bay Basin.

During the Mesozoic–Cenozoic, the central North China Block underwent complex tectonic transition and significant changes of tectonic geomorphology. This apatite fission track study shows that the west part of the Taihang Mountains experienced a rapid event which commenced before 160 Ma and lasted until 135 Ma, together with the extensive development of folds and thrusts, indicating this area experienced intense compression and uplift. Combined with the petrological and geological characteristics, the exhumation event represents the uplift of the Yanshanian North China Plateau and the Taihang Mountains inside it. During the Cenozoic, two episodes of rapid cooling events took place during 65–55 Ma and after 25 Ma, respectively. The former one corresponds with the formation of the Bohai Bay Basin (BBB), which led to the extensional denudation of the Taihang Mountains. The formation of the Bohai Bay Basin disrupted the Yanshanian North China Plateau, caused the negative inversion of the tectonic geomorphology in the central North China Block. The thermal models indicates that the formation of north and south parts of the BBB commenced simultaneously in the south and north parts of the Taihang Mountains, implying the dynamics should be derived from the west or the east, rather than the north or the south. The latter cooling event took place earlier in the north part of the Taihang Mountains than the south part, corresponding with the Miocene thermal subsidence of the BBB.