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Identification and quantification of lead source in sediment in the northern East China Sea using stable lead isotopes

  • Chemistry
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Abstract

Stable Pb isotopes in surface and core sediments were determined to identify the sources of Pb contaminants in the northern East China Sea (ECS). The Bayesian stable isotope mixing model was used to quantify the contributions of Pb sources. The results show that since the late 1980s, ratios of 207Pb/206Pb and 208Pb/206Pb increased in the top 34-cm sediment shown in the coastal core samples, reflecting elevated anthropogenic Pb input in coastal sea. Seaward increase of 207Pb/206Pb and 208Pb/206Pb ratios in surface sediments reveals that anthropogenic Pb came mainly via atmospheric transmission into the ECS. Anthropogenic sources accounted for 12.0%–21.1% of the total Pb in sediments after the 1990s. Coal combustion was the largest anthropogenic contributor (47.5%±18.8%), and Pb mining and smelting, cement production, and vehicle exhaust/gasoline contributed 23.2%±17.1%, 19.0%±13.0%, and 10.3%±6.9%, respectively. The proportions of the anthropogenic sources gradually increased while geogenic source (riverine sediment) decreased from the coast to the outer shelf. This study demonstrated that the significant influence of atmospheric input of Pb contaminants into the ECS, and also the urgent need to control coal combustion and Pb discharge from industrial dust and fume emission in China. It also highlights the promising application of the Simmr model to quantify the proportions of multiple sources of trace elements in an environment.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Marine Science and Engineering, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, 266237, China

    Yu Yu, Yingxia Li, Bing Li, Yichao Ren & Xiaoyu Dong

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  1. Yu Yu
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  2. Yingxia Li
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Correspondence to Yu Yu.

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Supported by the Open Fund of CAS Key Laboratory of Marine Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. KLMEES201805), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41406087), and the “First Class Fishery Discipline” Program in Shandong Province, China

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Yu, Y., Li, Y., Li, B. et al. Identification and quantification of lead source in sediment in the northern East China Sea using stable lead isotopes. J. Ocean. Limnol. 39, 1887–1900 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00343-020-0286-0

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