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Characteristics and seasonal variations in the hydrochemistry of the Tangra Yumco basin, central Tibetan Plateau, and responses to the Indian summer monsoon

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Abstract

This study focuses on the characteristics, seasonal variations, and controlling mechanisms of the ionic composition of the Tangra Yumco basin for lake water, river water, and rainfall, which is located in the central Tibetan Plateau. The results showed that Na+ is the major cation in the lake water, Ca2+ is the major cation in the river water and rainfall, and \({\text{HCO}}_{3}^{ - }\) is the major anion in all the water samples. A comparison of the concentrations of calcium in the river water, lake water, and lake sediments reveal significant carbonate precipitation within the lake. The chemical composition of the lake water is mainly controlled by evaporation and crystallization, whereas the compositions of river water and rainfall are mainly controlled by carbonate weathering. Because the TDS content of the river water is lower than the lake water, the TDS content of the lake water is diluted, forming a decreasing trend during the beginning of the Indian summer monsoon. The lake water TDS content then increases rapidly from August to early September due to enhanced evaporation of the lake surface water and the introduction of a large amount of material carried by surface runoff. It then decreases slightly until December due to precipitation in the lake water and less input from the surroundings of the lake.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for improving the manuscript who gives helpful comments. We are grateful to Yong Wang, Qingfeng Ma, Jianting Ju, Ping Peng, Feng Chen, Ruimin Yang, Yun Guo and Gerhard Daut for their participation in the fieldwork and/or assistance with the laboratory analysis. We also thank Zhiyong Zhu, who completed most of the analysis in the laboratory in Lhasa. This work was jointly supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41271225), the CAS Strategic Priority Research Program (XDB03030000) and the Chinese MOST Projects (2012CB956100, 2012FY111400).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Tibetan Environment Changes and Land Surface Processes (TEL), Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Building 3, Courtyard 16, Lin Cui Road, Chaoyang District, 100101, Beijing, People’s Republic of China

    Baojin Qiao, Junbo Wang, Lei Huang & Liping Zhu

  2. CAS Center for Excellence in Tibetan Plateau Earth Sciences, Beijing, 100101, People’s Republic of China

    Junbo Wang & Liping Zhu

  3. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, People’s Republic of China

    Baojin Qiao & Lei Huang

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  1. Baojin Qiao
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Correspondence to Junbo Wang.

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Qiao, B., Wang, J., Huang, L. et al. Characteristics and seasonal variations in the hydrochemistry of the Tangra Yumco basin, central Tibetan Plateau, and responses to the Indian summer monsoon. Environ Earth Sci 76, 162 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-017-6479-y

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