GEOCHEMICAL STUDIES OF U, TH, RA, ~(40)K IN SECIMENTS OF THE CHINA SEA AND ADJACENT SEA AREA, AND LOWER REACHES OF SEVERAL CHINESE RIVERS

Geochemical studies of the U, Th, Ra, and 40K in surface sediments of the China Sea and adjacent sea areas, the lower reaches of the Huanghe and Changjiang Rivers and the estuaries of the Zhujiang and Rongjiang Rivers were carried out with a model 8180-4K multichannel Ge(Li)y spectrometer in 1981-1985. The .mean values of U, Ra, Th, 40K are about 2.11 ppm, 7.67×10-13g/g, 11.00 ppm, and 2.33 ppm respectively, in the China Sea, the Okinawa Trough, and the Changjiang and Huanghe River estuaries. The distribution of the four isotopes is uniform in the above zone.The contents of U and Th in the sediments of the Zhujiang and Rongjiang Rivers and the Fujian coast are 1-4 times higher than those of the above zone and are related to the granite and radioactive ore present in the upper reaches of these rivers or the adjacent mountains.The distributions of U, Th, Ra, and 40K are related to the physico-chemical property, redox state, geological type and grain size of the sediment, and biotic activity.