Dated deposition couplets link catchment erosion flux with storm discharge on the Chinese Loess Plateau

Tracing erosion flux within a single catchment is one of the major targets for the Earth's Critical Zone science. The sedimentary succession in landslide-dammed reservoirs within the Chinese Loess Plateau(CLP) serves as a valuable archive of past erosion history. Deposition couplets and annual freeze–thaw layers were firstly identified for the sedimentary succession of the Jingbian reservoir on the northern CLP with high-resolution XRF core scanning. The deposition couplets in the reservoir since 1963 A.D. were further dated with ^(137) Cs activity. We found consistent one-to-one correspondence between couplet specific sediment yield and storm intensity. The reconstructed soil erosion history highlights the control of storm intensity and frequency on loess erosion on the northern CLP in the past hundreds of years.

Mobility of rhenium and selenium during chemical weathering and their implication for petrogenic organic carbon oxidation

The oxidative weathering of petrogenic organic carbon(OC_(petro)) is an important source of carbon dioxide(CO_(2)) into the atmosphere on geological timescales and significantly influences the carbon cycle and global climate change. However, at present, a robust proxy to assess OC_(petro)oxidation is lacking. Riverine rhenium(Re) has emerged as a potential proxy to trace OC_(petro)oxidation, but little is known about Re sources and its relationship with OC_(petro)oxidation. To better understand the robustness of this proxy, we analyzed a shale weathering profile from the early Cambrian Shuijingtuo Formation in Chengkou County, Chongqing City, to address the mobility of Re and selenium(Se) and their relationship with the oxidation of OC_(petro)by analyses of the elemental variation and sequential extraction. The results showed that the chemical index of alteration(CIA)increases from the fresh bedrock to the weathered sections, indicating enhanced weathering intensity. Based on the sequential extraction and mass transfer coefficients(τ), Re and Se mainly exist in the organic phase of shale and are paired lost with OC_(petro) during weathering, with no obvious correlation with sulfide minerals. Furthermore, the different proportions of Re and Se loss with OC_(petro) loss can be attributed to their different geochemical behaviors during weathering. Our study supports Re as a robust proxy to trace OC_(petro) oxidation, whereas Se is the potential one. In the future, combined studies on various sedimentary rock profiles with catchment basins are needed to determine the sources of riverine Re and Se and their relationships with OC_(petro) oxidation.

Chemical weathering processes in the Chinese Loess Plateau

Covered by erodible loess and affected by significant seasonal climate variations,chemical weathering in the Chinese Loess Plateau(abbreviated as CLP)has important effects on the hydrochemistry of the Yellow River and the global carbon cycle.However,chemical weathering processes in the CLP are still unclear.Based on 296 river water samples in the CLP in the different seasons,hydrochemistry,weathering processes,and their controlling factors were revealed.River waters in the CLP exhibited slightly alkalinity(pH=8.4±0.5)with much high total dissolved solids(TDS)values(691±813 mg/L).The water types of river water in the CLP were primarily SO_(4)^(2-)-Cl^(-)-Na^(+),HCO_(3)^(-)-Ca^(2+)-Mg^(2+),and SO_(4)^(2-)-Cl^(-)-Ca^(2+)-Mg^(2+).According to the forward model,evaporite dissolution has the largest contribution(55.1%±0.2%)to riverine solutes in the CLP,then followed by carbonate weathering(35.6%±0.2%)and silicate weathering(6.5%±0.1%).For spatio-temporal variations,the contribution of evaporite dissolution in the CLP decreased from northwest to southeast with higher proportion in the dry season,carbonate weathering increased from northwest to southeast with a higher proportion in the wet season,and silicate weathering showed minor spatio-temporal variations.Ca^(2+)and Mg^(2+)were affected by carbonate precipitation and/or incongruent calcite dissolution,and about 50%of samples exhibited cation exchange reactions.The physical erosion rate in the CLP,which was 372±293 t·km^(-2)·yr^(-1),varied greatly and was greater than those of other worldwide rivers.Chemical weathering rates in the CLP showed an increasing trend southward.During the wet season,high runoff led to the release of evaporite and carbonate from loess,while the interfacial reaction kinetic limited the increase of the silicate weathering rates.The CO_(2)consumption budget by carbonate weathering(6.1×10^(10)mol/yr)and silicate weathering(1.6×10^(10)mol/yr)in the CLP accounted for 0.29%and 0.08%of the global carbon cycle,respectively.Meanwhile,the weathering proportion by sulfuric acids was relatively high with a CO_(2)release flux of 6.5×10^(9)mol/yr.By compiling the data,we propose that the interfacial reaction kinetic and runoff control CO_(2)consumption rate by silicate and carbonate weathering,respectively.These results contribute to the understanding of modern weathering processes of loess in the CLP,thus helping to deduce the environmental and climatic evolution of the basin.

The role of earthquake-induced landslides in erosion and weathering from active mountain ranges:Progress and perspectives

Earthquakes play a fundamental role in the evolution of Earth’s topography through co-seismic uplift and subsidence,as well as erosion through widespread landslides induced by ground motion.Earthquake-induced landslides can result in exceptional increases in the transfer of mass from landscapes,supplying sediment to rivers where impacts can last for decades or longer.Landslides can also erode vegetation and soils,in addition to exposing freshly ground rock mass,which can both result in regionally significant carbon transfers.Recent work has sought to quantify the fluxes,rates,and temporal patterns of the impacts on earth surface processes generated by these tectonic events.In this review,we focus on the impacts of earthquake-induced landslides on erosion and sediment flux,river water chemistry,and carbon export through the lens of the well-studied 2008 Wenchuan earthquake.We then discuss these themes in the context of works from the 1999 Taiwan Chi-Chi earthquake,2015 Nepalese Gorkha earthquake,and New Zealand historical earthquakes,altogether highlighting an important role of earthquake-induced landslides in erosion and weathering along tectonically active mountain ranges.We suggest that more monitoring,geochemical tracing,paleo-records,and/or modelling studies are needed to compare the processes and fluxes of catchment erosion and weathering before and after earthquake events,which will help to deepen our understanding not only of the impacts of earthquake-induced landslides on earth surface processes,but also the linkage among high magnitude events,continental erosion and weathering,and the long-term global carbon cycle.

Fingerprinting hydrothermal fluids in porphyry Cu deposits using K and Mg isotopes

In this study, we performed an integrated investigation of K and Mg isotopes in hydrothermally altered rocks from the giant Dexing porphyry Cu deposit in China. Both the altered porphyry intrusion and the surrounding wall rocks exhibit large variations in K and Mg isotope compositions, with δ41K values ranging between-1.02‰ and 0.38‰, and δ26Mg values ranging between-0.49‰ and 0.32‰. The δ41K and δ26Mg values of the majority of altered samples are higher than the isotopic baseline values for upper continental crust. We attribute the general increase in δ41 K and δ26Mg in altered rocks to hydrothermal alteration,which caused preferential incorporation of heavy K and Mg isotopes in alteration products, particularly phyllosilicates. However,a few altered samples show anomalously low δ41K and δ26Mg values. The δ41K and δ26Mg values do not correlate with K and Mg concentrations, or mineralogy of altered samples. The variable K-Mg isotope data likely reflect fluids of different physicalchemical properties, or different isotopic compositions. Based on the combined K-Mg isotope data, at least three groups of hydrothermal fluids are distinguished from the Dexing porphyry deposit. Therefore, K-Mg isotopes are potentially a novel tracer for fingerprinting fluids in complex hydrothermal systems.

Sm-Nd isotope study and dating on Honguleleng ophiolite in Xinjiang, China

A study of the Sm-Nd isotope composition of Honguleleng ophiolite in Xinjiang, China, isochron age ((626±25)Ma),εNd(t) = 8.40,and its model age (TNdDM) in the range of 1 180-1 208 Ma, indicates that the ophiolite was formed in the late stage of the Upper Sinian. In combination with its facies association, petrochemistry, REE patterns, trace elements