RARE EARTH ELEMENTS IN SURFACE SEDIMENTS OF WESTERN SOUTH YELLOW SEA AND THEIR PROVENANCE IMPLICATIONS

Rare earth elements were analyzed for the 486 surface samples taken from the western South Yellow Sea. It was found that the contents of rare earth elements increase with the decrease in mean grain size. Mineralogy is another factor to be considered in some stations. The parameters of the Rare earth element, such as the ratio between light rare earth element and heavy rare earth element, Eu abnormity and Ce abnormity have nothing to do with grain size but mainly controlled by the source rock compositions. Therefore, they could be used as effective means to define the provenance of the sediments. The distribution pattern of rare earth elements shows that the chondrite-normalized rare earth element partitioning curve inclines to the right, indicating the enrichment of light rare earth elements. There is moderate negative Eu abnormity, but no Ce abnormity at all. The parameters of the rare earth elements in the study area denote a provenance from the Yellow River.