Geochemical differences between Gobi surface soil and transported dust: Implications for dust provenance identification in northern China's Gobi deserts
Corresponding Author
Zhengcai Zhang
Key Laboratory of Qian Xuesen Deserticulture of Shaanxi Higher Education Institute, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
School of Geography and Tourism, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
Shaanxi Observation and Research Station for Ecology and Environment of Desert-Loess Zone at Yulin, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Lanying Han
Key Laboratory of Qian Xuesen Deserticulture of Shaanxi Higher Education Institute, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
School of Geography and Tourism, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
Shaanxi Observation and Research Station for Ecology and Environment of Desert-Loess Zone at Yulin, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
Search for more papers by this authorAimin Liang
School of Geographical Science, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
Search for more papers by this authorZhibao Dong
Key Laboratory of Qian Xuesen Deserticulture of Shaanxi Higher Education Institute, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
School of Geography and Tourism, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
Shaanxi Observation and Research Station for Ecology and Environment of Desert-Loess Zone at Yulin, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Zhengcai Zhang
Key Laboratory of Qian Xuesen Deserticulture of Shaanxi Higher Education Institute, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
School of Geography and Tourism, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
Shaanxi Observation and Research Station for Ecology and Environment of Desert-Loess Zone at Yulin, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
Search for more papers by this authorCorresponding Author
Lanying Han
Key Laboratory of Qian Xuesen Deserticulture of Shaanxi Higher Education Institute, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
School of Geography and Tourism, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
Shaanxi Observation and Research Station for Ecology and Environment of Desert-Loess Zone at Yulin, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
Search for more papers by this authorAimin Liang
School of Geographical Science, Southwest University, Chongqing, China
Search for more papers by this authorZhibao Dong
Key Laboratory of Qian Xuesen Deserticulture of Shaanxi Higher Education Institute, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
School of Geography and Tourism, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
Shaanxi Observation and Research Station for Ecology and Environment of Desert-Loess Zone at Yulin, Shaanxi Normal University, Xian, China
Search for more papers by this authorAbstract
Dust storms are an important consequence of aeolian sediment emissions and transport processes on Earth and other planets. Dust geochemistry and provenance are important issues for aeolian and environmental science researchers because both properties identify source areas that may require ecological restoration to reduce the formation of future dust storms. Although there have been many studies of dust geochemistry and provenance in China and elsewhere, most of the analysed dust was collected from the surface soil and was not transported dust. However, particle selection by the wind and subsequent sorting changes the geochemistry of the transported dust in the air. Unfortunately, there have been few studies documenting this difference. In the present study, we collected transported dust in northern China, and used the analysis of variance method to analyse the dust geochemistry to detect differences among land surfaces and in the near-surface transported dust and dust at heights of 0.25 and 1.5 m above the surface. We found that Sc, V, Zn, Y, Zr, Nb, Cd and Cs and all REE concentrations differed between surface dust and transported dust at 1.5 m height. Zr, Y, Lan, Cen, LREE concentrations and Nd/Sm ratios of REEs were larger in the surface soil than in transported dust. Dust geochemistry at heights ≥ 0.25 m was comparable in source and deposition regions, indicating that the characteristics of transported dust are a suitable indicator for dust provenance identification. Our results also indicate that the Hexi Corridor Desert and the Heihe River Basin are primary dust sources for downwind regions.
CONFLICT OF INTERESTS STATEMENT
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Open Research
DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT
Data are available on request from the authors.
Supporting Information
| Filename | Description |
|---|---|
| esp70075-sup-0001-Supplementary_material.docxWord 2007 document , 607.6 KB | Figure S1. Trace and rare earth element (REE) concentrations. Region locations are shown in Figure 1b. “Surface soil” represents the values in the top 5 cm of the soil; “near-surface transport” represents dust transported near the surface, and 0.25 m represents dust transported at this height above the surface. Table S1. Trace element concentrations (μg/g) used in the data analysis. Figure 1b shows the locations of site numbers S1 to S19. “S” represents blowing dust collected at the surface, “0.25” represents blowing dust collected at 0.25 m height above the land surface, “1.5” represents blowing dust collected at 1.5 m height above the land surface, whereas “soil” represents sediment samples obtained to a depth of 0.5 cm in the surface soil at the site. Table S2. Enrichment factor of trace elements. Table S3. Rare earth element (REE) concentrations (μg/g) used in the data analysis. Figure 1b shows the locations of site numbers S1 to S19. “S” represents blowing dust collected at the surface, “0.25” represents blowing dust collected at 0.25 m height above the land surface, “1.5” represents blowing dust collected at 1.5 m height above the land surface, whereas “soil” represents sediment samples obtained to a depth of 0.5 cm in the surface soil at the site. Table S4. Enrichment factor of rare earth elements. Table S5. Trace and rare earth element ratios used in the data analysis. Figure 1b shows the locations of site numbers S1 to S19. “S” represents blowing dust collected at the surface, “0.25” represents blowing dust collected at 0.25 m height above land surface, “1.5” represents blowing dust collected at 1.5 m height above land surface, whereas “soil” represents sediment samples obtained to a depth of 0.5 cm in surface soil at the site. Abbreviations: HREE, total heavy rare earth elements; LREE, total light rare earth elements; “T” means that the variable passed the range test. |
Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article.
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