Sr isotopic signature of the Ganga Alluvial Plain and its implication to Sr flux of the Ganga River System |
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Authors: | Sandeep Singh Munendra Singh A K Choudhary Anju Saxena I B Singh A K Jain |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Earth Science, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee, 247667, India;(2) Department of Geology, University of Lucknow, Lucknow, 226007, India;(3) Institute Instrumentation Centre, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, Roorkee, 247667, India |
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Abstract: | The influx of Sr responsible for increase in marine Sr has been attributed to rise of Himalaya and weathering of the Himalayan
rocks. The rivers draining Himalaya to the ocean by the northern part of the Indian sub-continent comprising the Ganga Alluvial
Plain (GAP) along with Central parts of the Himalaya and the northern part of the Indian Craton are held responsible for the
transformation of Sr isotopic signature. The GAP is basically formed by the Himalayan-derived sediments and serves as transient
zone between the source (Himalaya) and the sink (Bay of Bengal). The Gomati River, an important alluvial tributary of the
Ganga River, draining nearly 30,500 km2 area of GAP is the only river which is originating from the GAP. The river recycles the Himalayan-derived sediments and transport
its weathering products into the Ganga River and finally to Bay of Bengal. 11 water samples were collected from the Gomati
River and its intrabasinal lakes for measurement of Sr isotopic composition. Sr concentration of Gomati River water is about
335 μg/l, which is about five times higher than the world’s average of river water (70 μg/l) and nearly three times higher
than the Ganga River water in the Himalaya (130 μg/l) The Sr isotopic ratios reported are also higher than global average
runoff (0.7119) and to modern seawater (0.7092) values. Strong geochemical sediment–water interaction appearing on surface
is responsible for the dissolved Sr isotopic ratios in the River water. Higher Sr isotopic rations found during post-monsoon
than in pre-monsoon season indicate the importance of fluxes due to monsoonal erosion of the GAP into the Gomati River. Monsoon
precipitation and its interaction with alluvium appear to be major vehicle for the addition of dissolved Sr load into the
alluvial plain rivers. This study establishes that elevated 87Sr/86Sr ratios of the Gomati River are due to input of chemical weathering of alluvial material present in the Ganga Alluvial Plain. |
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