Tracing dust sources and transport patterns using Sr, Nd and Pb isotopes

Radiogenic isotopes for deciphering terrigenous input provenance in the western Mediterranean

“…Additionally, the Pb isotope composition provides information on source provenances since natural Pb can be transported in the detrital material or in eolian dust for long distances (Grousset et al, 1994;Grousset and Biscaye, 2005;Kylander et al, 2005). However, anthropogenic Pb contamination can overprint the natural Pb isotope signal (Grousset et al, 1994;Kylander et al, 2005).…”

“…For instance, a warming in the Mediterranean Sea basin could favour the northward expansion of the monsoon in summer (Rowell, 2003;Hall and Peyrillé, 2006). Saharan dust particles are fine silts and clay-size minerals (Grousset et al, 1998;Grousset and Biscaye, 2005;Stuut et al, 2009) and the grain-size distribution of this material showed mean sizes below 6 µm ( Fig. 3d) (RodrigoGámiz et al, 2011), in this study we investigated the fine silt fraction, i.e.…”

“…Radiogenic isotopes (Sr, Nd, Pb) are likewise powerful tracers for identifying and characterizing source areas of terrigenous material, which may in turn give us additional information about the provenance and transport mechanisms (e.g., Grousset et al, , 1992Grousset et al, , 1998Revel et al, 1996;Tütken et al, 2002;Grousset and Biscaye, 2005;Jullien et al, 2007;Cole et al, 2009;Box et al, 2011;Meyer et al, 2011;Stumpf et al, 2011;Scheuvens et al, 2013).…”

Seasonal variations in the Sr-Nd isotopic compositions of suspended particulate matter in the lower Changjiang River: Provenance and erosion constraints

“…The radiogenic neodymium and strontium isotopes are generally considered to be reliable indicators of the provenance of sediments because the geological bodies have different Nd-Sr isotopic compositions that depend on their origins and ages [24][25][26][27]. Geologically, the CR Basin consists of variable strata from the Archean to the Quaternary period.…”

“…Radiogenic neodymium and strontium isotopes are generally considered to be reliable indicators of the provenance of sediments, not only because geological bodies have different Sr-Nd isotopic compositions that depend on their origins and ages, but also because the Sr-Nd isotopes undergo limited alterations during surficial processes such as weathering and transportation [20][21][22][23][24][25]. As a result, the Nd-Sr isotopic signatures of the sediments have been useful for identifying their sources and studying erosion processes [2, [26][27][28][29][30].…”