Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Aeolian process of the dried-up riverbeds of the Hexi Corridor, China: a wind tunnel experiment

  • Published:
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Wind tunnel studies, which remain limited, are an important tool to understand the aeolian processes of dried-up riverbeds. The particle size, chemical composition, and the mineral contents of sediments arising from the dried river beds are poorly understood. Dried-up riverbeds cover a wide area in the Hexi Corridor, China, and comprise a complex synthesis of different land surfaces, including aeolian deposits, pavement surfaces, and Takyr crust. The results of the present wind tunnel experiment suggest that aeolian transport from the dried-up riverbeds of the Hexi Corridor ranges from 0 to 177.04 g/m2/min and that dry riverbeds could be one of the main sources of dust emissions in this region. As soon as the wind velocity reaches 16 m/s and assuming that there are abundant source materials available, aeolian transport intensity increases rapidly. The dried-up riverbed sediment and the associated aeolian transported material were composed mainly of fine and medium sands. However, the transported samples were coarser than the bed samples, because of the sorting effect of the aeolian processes on the sediment. The aeolian processes also led to regional elemental migration and mineral composition variations.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Argaman, E., Singer, A., & Tsoar, H. (2006). Erodibility of some crust forming soils/sediments from the Southern Aral Sea Basin as determined in a wind tunnel. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 31(1), 47–63.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arimoto, R., Kim, Y. J., Kim, Y. P., Quinn, P. K., Bates, T. S., Anderson, T. L., et al. (2006). Characterization of Asian Dust during ACE-Asia. Global and Planetary Change, 52(1–4), 23–56.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Avecilla, F., Panebianco, J. E., & Buschiazzo, D. E. (2016). A wind-tunnel study on saltation and PM10 emission from agricultural soils. Aeolian Research, 22, 73–83.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Badarinath, K. V. S., Kharol, S. K., Kaskaoutis, D. G., & Kambezidis, H. D. (2007). Case study of a dust storm over Hyderabad area, India: its impact on solar radiation using satellite data and ground measurements. Science of the Total Environment, 384(1–3), 316–332.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bory, A. J. M., Biscaye, P. E., Svensson, A., & Grousset, F. E. (2002). Seasonal variability in the origin of recent atmospheric mineral dust at NorthGRIP, Greenland. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 196(3–4), 123–134.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Boyd, P. W., Mackie, D. S., & Hunter, K. A. (2010). Aerosol iron deposition to the surface ocean —modes of iron supply and biological responses. Marine Chemistry, 120(1), 128–143.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bullard, J., Baddock, M., McTainsh, G., & Leys, J. (2008). Sub-basin scale dust source geomorphology detected using MODIS. Geophysical Research Letters, 35(15). doi:10.1029/2008GL033928.

  • Chen, B., Kitagawa, H., Hu, K., Jie, D. M., Yang, J. P., & Li, J. M. (2009). Element and mineral characterization of dust emission from the saline land at Songnen Plain, Northeastern China. Journal of Environmental Sciences-China, 21(10), 1363–1370.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Collins, B., Bedford, D., Corbett, S., Cronkite-Ratcliff, C., & Fairley, H. (2016). Relations between rainfall-runoff-induced erosion and aeolian deposition at archaeological sites in a semi-arid dam-controlled river corridor. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 41(7), 899–917.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Derbyshire, E., Meng, X., & Kemp, R. A. (1998). Provenance, transport and characteristics of modern aeolian dust in western Gansu Province, China, and interpretation of the quaternary loess record. Journal of Arid Environments, 39(3), 497–516.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dong, Z., Qu, J., Liu, X., Zhang, W., & Wang, X. (2002). Experimental investigation of drag coefficients of gobi surfaces. Science in China Series D: Earth Sciences, 45(7), 609–615.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dong, Z., Wang, H., Liu, X., & Wang, X. (2004). The blown sand flux over a sandy surface: a wind tunnel investigation on the fetch effect. Geomorphology, 57(1–2), 117–127.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dong, Z., Man, D., Luo, W., Qian, G., Wang, J., Zhao, M., et al. (2010). Horizontal aeolian sediment flux in the Minqin area, a major source of Chinese dust storms. Geomorphology, 116(1–2), 58–66.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edvardsson, K., & Magnusson, R. (2009). Monitoring of dust emission on gravel roads: development of a mobile methodology and examination of horizontal diffusion. Atmospheric Environment, 43(4), 889–896.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ellouz, F., Masmoudi, M., Quisefit, J. P., & Medhioub, K. (2013). Characteristics of trace elements in aerosols collected in Northern Tunisia. Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, 55-57, 35–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Evan, A. T., Heidinger, A. K., & Pavolonis, M. J. (2006). Development of a new over-water advanced very high resolution radiometer dust detection algorithm. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 27(18), 3903–3924.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Funk, R., Reuter, H. I., Hoffmann, C., Engel, W., & Otti, D. (2008). Effect of moisture on fine dust emission from tillage operations on agricultural soils. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 33(12), 1851–1863.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garcia, C., Amengual, A., Homar, V., & Zamora, A. (2017). Losing water in temporary streams on a Mediterranean island: effects of climate and land-cover changes. Global and Planetary Change, 148, 139–152.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goossens, D., & Buck, B. (2009). Dust emission by off-road driving: experiments on 17 arid soil types, Nevada, USA. Geomorphology, 107(3–4), 118–138.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harrison, S. P., Kohfeld, K. E., Roelandt, C., & Claquin, T. (2001). The role of dust in climate changes today, at the last glacial maximum and in the future. Earth-Science Reviews, 54(1), 43–80.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • He, K., Kuang, C. G., & Zhang, L. J. (2008). Relation between riverbed alluvial deposits in the Harbin reach of the Songhuajiang River and sand-dust weather. Geology China, 35(1), 150–156.

    Google Scholar 

  • Huo, Z., Feng, S., Kang, S., Li, W., & Chen, S. (2008). Effect of climate changes and water-related human activities on annual stream flows of the Shiyang river basin in arid north-west China. Hydrological Processes, 22(16), 3155–3167.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jia, X., Li, Y., & Wang, H. (2016). Bed sediment particle size characteristics and its sources implication in the desert reach of the Yellow River. Environmental Earth Sciences, 75(11), 1–13.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaufman, Y. J., Tanre, D., & Boucher, O. (2002). A satellite view of aerosols in the climate system. Nature, 419(6903), 215–223.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kazancı, N., Gulbabazadeh, T., Leroy, S. A. G., Ataselim, Z., & Gürbüz, A. (2016). Aeolian control on the deposition of high altitude lacustrine basins in the Middle East: the case of Lake Neor, NW Iran. Quaternary International, 408, 65–77.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lang, L., Wang, X., Wang, G., Hua, T., & Wang, H. (2015). Effects of aeolian processes on nutrient loss from surface soils and their significance for sandy desertification in Mu Us Desert, China: a wind tunnel approach. Journal of Arid Land, 7(4), 421–428.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leinen, M., Prospero, J. M., Arnold, E., & Blank, M. (1994). Mineralogy of aeolian dust reaching the North Pacific Ocean: 1. Sampling and analysis. Journal of Geophysical Research, 99(D10), 21017–21023.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lu, H., & Shao, Y. (2001). Toward quantitative prediction of dust storms: an integrated wind erosion modelling system and its applications. Environmental Modelling & Software, 16(3), 233–249.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meng, W., & Li, C. L. (2006). Study on treatment of sand-dust source of Liaohe River. Bulletin of Soil and Water Conservation, 26(2), 45–48.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mladenov, N., Alados-Arboledas, L., Olmo, F. J., Lyamani, H., Delgado, A., Molina, A., et al. (2011). Applications of optical spectroscopy and stable isotope analyses to organic aerosol source discrimination in an urban area. Atmospheric Environment, 45(11), 1960–1969.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Prospero, J. M., Ginoux, P., Torres, O., Nicholson, S. E., & Gill, T. E. (2002). Environmental characterization of global sources of atmospheric soil dust derived from the Nimbus 7 Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) absorbing aerosol product. Reviews of Geophysics, 40, 1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rao, W., Tan, H., Chen, J., Ji, J., Chen, Y., Pan, Y., et al. (2015). Nd–Sr isotope geochemistry of fine-grained sands in the basin-type deserts, West China: implications for the source mechanism and atmospheric transport. Geomorphology, 246, 458–471.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sang-Woo, K., Soon-Chang, Y., Jiyoung, K., Jung-Yoon, K., & Nobuo, S. (2010). Asian dust event observed in Seoul, Korea, during 29–31 May 2008: analysis of transport and vertical distribution of dust particles from lidar and surface measurements. Science of the Total Environment, 408(7), 1707–1718.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sassen, K. (2002). Indirect climate forcing over the western US from Asian dust storms. Geophysical Research Letters, 29(10). doi:10.1029/2001 GL014051.

  • Skoulikidis, N., Vardakas, L., Amaxidis, Y., & Michalopoulos, P. (2017). Biogeochemical processes controlling aquatic quality during drying and rewetting events in a Mediterranean non-perennial river reach. Science of the Total Environment, 575, 378–389.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tripathi, J., & Rajamani, V. (1999). Geochemistry of the loessic sediments on Delhi ridge, eastern Thar desert, Rajasthan: implications for exogenic processes. Chemical Geology, 155, 265–278.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, H., Jia, X., Li, K., & Li, Y. (2015). Horizontal wind erosion flux and potential dust emission in arid and semiarid regions of China: a major source area for East Asia dust storms. Catena, 133, 373–384.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, X., Zhang, C., Wang, H., Qian, G., Luo, W., Lu, J., et al. (2011). The significance of Gobi desert surfaces for dust emissions in China: an experimental study. Environmental Earth Sciences, 64(4), 1039–1050.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, X., Lang, L., Hua, T., Zhang, C., & Li, H. (2017). The effects of sorting by aeolian processes on the geochemical characteristics of surface materials: a wind tunnel experiment. Frontiers of Earth Science. doi:10.1007/s11707-017-0619-2.

  • Washington, R., Todd, M., Middleton, N. J., & Goudie, A. S. (2003). Dust-storm source areas determined by the total ozone monitoring spectrometer and surface observations. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 93(2), 297–313.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wolfe, S. A., & Nickling, W. G. (1996). Shear stress partition in sparsely vegetated desert canopies. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms, 21, 607–619.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Xie, Y. Y., & Chi, Y. P. (2016). Geochemical investigation of dry- and wet-deposited dust during the same dust-storm event in Harbin, China: constraint on provenance and implications for formation of aeolian loess. Journal of Asian Earth Sciences, 120, 43–61.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yadav, S., & Rajamani, V. (2004). Geochemistry of aerosols of northwestern part of India adjoining the Thar desert1. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 68, 1975–1988.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yan, P., Li, X., Ma, Y., Wu, W., & Qian, Y. (2015). Morphological characteristics of interactions between deserts and rivers in northern China. Aeolian Research, 19, 225–233.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang, C., Wang, X., Li, J., & Hua, T. (2011). Roles of climate changes and human interventions in land degradation: a case study by net primary productivity analysis in China’s Shiyanghe Basin. Environmental Earth Sciences, 64(8), 2183–2193.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang, W., Zhuang, G., Guo, J., Xu, D., Wang, W., Baumgardner, D., et al. (2010). Sources of aerosol as determined from elemental composition and size distributions in Beijing. Atmospheric Research, 95(2), 197–209.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang, X. Y., Arimoto, R., & An, Z. S. (1997). Dust emission from Chinese desert sources linked to variations in atmospheric circulation. Journal of Geophysical Research, 102(23), 28041–28047.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang, Z., Dong, Z., Li, J., Qian, G., & Jiang, C. (2016). Implications of surface properties for dust emission from gravel deserts (gobis) in the Hexi Corridor. Geoderma, 268, 69–77.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by a grant from the National Nature Science Foundation of China (41101006). We thank Mr. Hong Li for operating the wind tunnel and Ms. Fang Li for testing the mineral composition. We appreciate critical reviews of an anonymous referee, which helped to improve our thinking and the manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Desert and Desertification, Cold & Arid Regions Environmental & Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 320 West Donggang Road, Lanzhou, Gansu Province, 730000, China

    Caixia Zhang, Xunming Wang, Zhibao Dong & Ting Hua

  2. Key Laboratory of Water Cycle and Related Land Surface Processes, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China

    Xunming Wang

Authors
  1. Caixia Zhang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Xunming Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Zhibao Dong
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Ting Hua
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Caixia Zhang.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Zhang, C., Wang, X., Dong, Z. et al. Aeolian process of the dried-up riverbeds of the Hexi Corridor, China: a wind tunnel experiment. Environ Monit Assess 189, 419 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-017-6132-y

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-017-6132-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation