Orogenic belts are shaped by repeated episodes of plate convergence, involving terrane accretion, subduction, crustal melting, and mantle interactions. Understanding the timing, source characteristics, and evolution of these complex processes is crucial for reconstructing the history of continental growth and reworking. However, these events often leave behind overprinted and compositionally diverse geological records, making it challenging to disentangle the contributions from various mantle and crustal reservoirs.

Radiogenic isotopes—Strontium (Sr), Neodymium (Nd), and Hafnium (Hf)—offer unique insights because they respond differently to key geological processes such as source composition, partial melting, magmatic differentiation, and crustal residence time. Sr isotopes are sensitive to crustal input and fluid mobility, Nd isotopes track mantle-crust differentiation, and Hf isotopes (especially from zircon) provide robust information on juvenile vs. recycled sources

This raises a fundamental question: How can integrated Sr-Nd-Hf isotope datasets refine our understanding of multi-stage tectonic processes such as terrane accretion, crustal reworking, and magmatic underplating in complex orogenic belts?

Answering this question could help differentiate juvenile crustal additions from recycled components, quantify the extent of crust-mantle interaction, and illuminate the sequence and scale of events that shape continental crust during orogenesis.

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