ZHAN Shuie，WU Jinglu，WANG Jingzhong，et al. Characteristics of grain size and chemical elements in the Aral Sea sediments and its environmental significance in the arid zone of Central Asia[J]. Marine Geology & Quaternary Geology，xxxx，x(x)： x-xx. DOI: 10.16562/j.cnki.0256-1492.2024110701
Citation: ZHAN Shuie，WU Jinglu，WANG Jingzhong，et al. Characteristics of grain size and chemical elements in the Aral Sea sediments and its environmental significance in the arid zone of Central Asia[J]. Marine Geology & Quaternary Geology，xxxx，x(x)： x-xx. DOI: 10.16562/j.cnki.0256-1492.2024110701
shu

Characteristics of grain size and chemical elements in the Aral Sea sediments and its environmental significance in the arid zone of Central Asia

  • 1.

    Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Coastal Wetland Bioresources and Environmental Protection, Jiangsu Synthetic Innovation Center for Coastal Bio-agriculture, school of Wetlands, Yancheng Teachers University, Yancheng 224002, China

  • 2.

    State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China

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  • Received Date: November 06, 2024
  • Revised Date: January 20, 2025
  • Accepted Date: January 20, 2025
  • Available Online: March 26, 2025
    Graphical Abstract
    • Abstract

  • In order to reveal the dust storm record and environmental evolutionary history of lake deposits in the arid zone over the last hundred years, the grain size and chemical elements (Al, Ca, Fe, K, Na, Sr, Ti, Mn, V, Zn, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, As, Cd, and Pb) of sediments from cores in the Aral Sea of Central Asia, and different types of surface sediments basin wide were analyzed in combination with the 210Pb and 137Cs dating, based on which the sandstorm activities, environmental changes, and their causes in the Aral Sea basin over the last 120 years were explored. Grain size and its parameters, principal component analysis, particle size frequency curve and the end-member model analysis showed that the plurality value of 66.9 μm represented the threshold particle size of surface wind-sand erosion. The environmentally sensitive grain size fractions in the Aral Sea sediments at different times were extracted by the grain size-standard deviation method. Results show that coarse particles (＞24.1 μm) carried by sandstorm controlled the grain size composition due to the enhancement in the intensity and frequency of regional winds due to agricultural activities during 1935～1955, which is consistent with the monitoring data and historical records. Elemental sedimentary records indicate that environmental changes in the Aral Sea over the past 120 years could be divided into four stages: (1) 1900—1935 AD, the concentrations of Al, Fe, K, Ti, Mn, V, Zn, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, As, Cd and Pb were high, indicating stronger human activities; (2) except for Ca, Sr, and As, the contents of other elements significantly decreased while the grain size significantly increased during 1935—1955 AD, suggesting strong influence of sandstrom activities; (3) 1955—2000 AD, the elemental (Al, Ca, Fe, K, Ti, Mn, V, Zn, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, and Pb) contents fluctuated significantly, with a general trend of increasing, and then decreasing, due to regional industrial and agricultural activities; (4) 2000—2019 AD, the evaporation effect was the dominant factor, and the Sr and Na contents significantly increased. This study provided useful methodology and scientific reference for analyzing the grain size characteristics of sandstorm records, chemical elements origination, and environmental evolution in arid regions.

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