Geo-Marine Letters

, Volume 25, Issue 5, pp 300–305 | Cite as

Occurrence and environmental implications of magnetic iron sulfides in stiff muds from the continental shelf of the East China Sea

  • Zhanghua Wang
  • Zhongyuan Chen
  • Jiawei Gu
  • Yanhong Li
  • Weixian Li
Original
First Online:
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Accepted:

Abstract

Magnetic properties were measured on 370 vibrocores obtained from the outer continental shelf of the East China Sea, with the aim of reconstructing environmental changes during the late Quaternary. High SIRM/χ values (>25 kA m−1) found in stiff muds of late Pleistocene age suggest the presence of magnetic iron sulfides, especially greigite. Framboidal aggregates of greigite were further identified by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and attached energy dispersive X-ray (EDAX) analyses, as well as powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses of the magnetic separates. The occurrence of magnetic iron sulfides indicates the complex oxidation–reduction of the stiff muds, resulting from exposure and inundation during the last glacial maximum (LGM) and the post-glacial transgression, respectively.

Keywords

Continental Shelf Last Glacial Maximum Sand Ridge Isothermal Remanent Magnetization Saturation Isothermal Remanent Magnetization 
These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.
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Notes

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Drs. R.L. Reynolds, R.D. Elmore, A.P. Roberts, I.F. Snowball, and two anonymous reviewers for many constructive suggestions and comments. Thanks go also to the Marine Geological Survey Bureau, Shanghai, for providing valuable vibrocores. The project is funded by the China National Natural Science Foundation (grant no. 40206005) and the Asia–Pacific Network for Global Change Research and Global Change System for Analysis, Research and Training (grant no. 2003-12).

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Copyright information

© Springer-Verlag 2005

Authors and Affiliations

  • Zhanghua Wang
    • 1
  • Zhongyuan Chen
    • 1
  • Jiawei Gu
    • 2
  • Yanhong Li
    • 2
  • Weixian Li
    • 3
  1. 1.State Key Laboratory for Estuarine and Coastal Research, East China Normal UniversityShanghaiChina
  2. 2.Department of GeographyEast China Normal UniversityShanghaiChina
  3. 3.No. 1 Marine Geological Investigation Team, Marine Geological Survey of ShanghaiShanghaiChina

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