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The spatial distribution of major and trace elements of surface sediments in the northeastern Beibu Gulf of the South China Sea

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Abstract

A multi-index analysis including grain size, major and trace elements is performed on the surface sediments from the northeastern Beibu Gulf to trace the sources of the sediments and to understand the controlling factors for elements distribution. The mean grain size exhibits a wide variation ranging from 0.09Φ to 8.05Φ with an average value of 5.33Φ. The average contents of major elements descend in an order of c(SiO2)>c(Al2O3)>c(Fe2O3)>c(CaO)>c(MgO)>c(K2O)>c(Na2O)>c(TiO2)>c(P2O5)>c(MnO), while those of trace elements exhibit a descending order of c(Sr)>c(Rb)>c(V)>c(Zn)>c(Cr)>c(Pb)>c(Ni)>c(Cu)>c(As). On the basis of elementary distribution characteristics and statistical analyses, the study area is divided into the four zones: Zone I is located in the northeastern coastal area of the gulf, which receives large amount of fluvial materials from local rivers in Guangxi and Guangdong, China, and the Qiongzhou Strait; Zone II is located in the center of the study area, where surface sediments exhibits a multiple source; Zone III is located in the Qiongzhou Strait, where surface sediments are dominated by materials from the Zhujiang River and Hainan; Zone IV is located in the southwest of the study area, where surface sediments are mainly originated from the Red River and Hainan. The statistical analyses of sediment geochemical characteristics reveal that the grain size, which is mainly influenced by hydrodynamics and mineral composition of terrigenous materials, is the leading factor controlling the elementary distribution. Meanwhile, impacts from anthropogenic activities and marine biogenic process will also be taken into consideration.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the Institute of Geophysical and Geochemical Exploration, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences, China for the technical assistance in laboratory analysis, Yanhui Dong and Chunguo Yang from the Second Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, China for useful discussion.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Second Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Hangzhou, 310012, China

    Qian Ge, Liming Ye, Dong Xu, Jianru Zhao & Fengyou Chu

  2. Key Laboratory of Submarine Geosciences, State Oceanic Administration, Hangzhou, 310012, China

    Qian Ge, Liming Ye, Dong Xu, Jianru Zhao & Fengyou Chu

  3. Department of Oceanography and Coastal Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, 70803, USA

    George Z. Xue

  4. Center for Computation and Technology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, 70803, USA

    George Z. Xue

  5. Coastal Studies Institute, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, 70803, USA

    George Z. Xue

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  1. Qian Ge
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  2. George Z. Xue
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  3. Liming Ye
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Correspondence to Qian Ge.

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Foundation item: The National Programme on Global Change and Air-Sea Interaction of China under contract Nos GASI-GEOGE-03, GASI-04-01-02 and GASI-GEOGE-05; the National Natural Science Foundation of China under contract Nos 41476047, 41106045, 41506012 and 41206045.

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Ge, Q., Xue, G.Z., Ye, L. et al. The spatial distribution of major and trace elements of surface sediments in the northeastern Beibu Gulf of the South China Sea. Acta Oceanol. Sin. 38, 93–102 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13131-019-1402-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13131-019-1402-x

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