Abstract
The distribution and geochemical composition of suspended-particulate matter (SPM) in the East China Sea (ECS) were investigated during the summer period of high continental runoff to elucidate SPM sources, distribution and cross-shelf transport. The spatial variability of SPM distribution (0.3–6.5 mg l−1) and geochemical composition (POC, Al, Si, Fe, Mn, Ca, Mg and K) in the ECS was pronounced during summer when the continental fluxes of freshwater and terrestrial materials were highest during the year. Under the influences of Changjiang runoff, Kuroshio intrusion, surface production and bottom resuspension, the distribution generally showed strong gradients decreasing seaward for both biogenic and lithogenic materials. Particulate organic carbon was enriched in surface water (mean ∼18%) due to the influence of biological productivity, and was diluted by resuspended and/or laterally-transported materials in bottom water (mean 9.4%). The abundance of lithogenic elements (Al, Si, Fe, Mn) increased toward the bottom, and the distribution correlations were highly significant. Particulate CaCO3 distribution provided evidence that the SPM of the bottom water in the northern part of the study area was likely mixed with sediments originally derived from Huanghe. A distinct benthic nepheloid layer (BNL) was present in all seaward transects of the ECS shelf. Sediment resuspension may be caused by tidal fluctuation and other forcing and be regarded as the principal agent in the formation of BNL. This BNL was likely responsible for the transport of biogenic and lithogenic particles across or along the ECS shelf. Total inventories of SPM, POC and PN are 46, 2.8 and 0.4 Tg, respectively, measured over the total area of 0.45 × 106 km2 of the ECS shelf. Their mean residence times are about 27, 13 and 11 days, respectively. The inventory of SPM in the water column was higher in the northernmost and southernmost transects and lower in the middle transects, reflecting the influences of terrestrial inputs from Changjiang and/or resuspended materials from Huanghe deposits in the north and perhaps from Minjiang and/or Taiwan’s rivers in the south. The distribution and transport patterns of SPM and geochemical elements strongly indicate that continental sources and cross-shelf transport modulate ECS particulate matter in summer.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Anderson, T. (1992): Model the influence of food C:N ratio, and respiration on growth and nitrogen excretion in marine zooplankton and bacteria. J. Plankton Res., 14, 1645–1671.
Beardsley, R. C., R. Limeburner, H. Yu and G. A. Cannon (1985): Discharge of the Changjiang (Yangtze River) into the East China Sea. Cont. Shelf Res., 4, 57–76.
Cauwet, G. and F. T. Mackenzie (1993): Carbon inputs and distribution in estuaries of turbid rivers: the Yangtze and Yellow rivers (China). Mar. Chem., 43, 235–246.
Chao, S.-Y. (1991): Circulation of the East China Sea. A numerical study. J. Oceanogr. Soc. Japan, 46, 273–295.
Chen, C., R. C. Beardsley, R. Limeburner and K. Kim (1994): Comparison of winter and summer hydrographic observations in the Yellow and East China Seas and adjacent Kuroshio during 1986. Cont. Shelf Res., 14, 909–929.
Chen, J., F. Wang, M. Meybeck, D. He, X. Xia and L. Zhang (2005): Spatial and temporal analysis of water chemistry records (1958–2000) in the Huanghe (Yellow River) basin. Glob. Biogeochem. Cycles, 19, GB3016, doi:10.1029/2004GB002325.
Chester, R. (1990): Marine Geochemistry. Chapman & Hall, London, 698 pp.
Choi, B. H. (1984): A three-dimensional model of the East China Sea. p. 209–224. In Ocean Hydrodynamics of the Japan and East China Seas, ed. by I. Ichiye, Elsevier, Amsterdam.
DeMaster, D. J., B. A. McKee, C. A. Nittrouer, J.-c. Qian and G.-d. Cheng (1983): Rates of sedimentaion processes based on radiochemical profiles from continental shelf deposits in the East China Sea. p. 581–605. In Proceedings on the International Symposium on Sedimentation on the Continental Shelf with Special Reference to the East China Sea, Vol. 1, China Ocean Press, Beijing.
DeMaster, D. J., B. A. McKee, C. A. Nittrouer, J.-c. Qian and G.-d. Cheng (1985): Rates of sediment accumulation and particle reworking based on radiochemical measurements from continental shelf deposits in the East China Sea. Cont. Shelf Res., 4, 143–158.
Gao, S., P. Cheng, Y. P. Wang and Q. Y. Gao (2000). Characteristics of suspended sediment concentrations over the areas adjacent to Changjiang River Estuary, the summer of 1998. Mar. Sci. Bullet., 2, 14–24.
Gong, G.-C., Y.-L. Lee and K.-K. Liu (1996): Chemical hydrography and chlorophyll a distribution in the East China Sea in summer: implications in nutrient dynamics. Cont. Shelf Res., 16, 1561–1590.
Gong, G.-C., Y.-H Wen, B.-W Wang and G.-J. Liu (2003): Seasonal variation of chlorophyll a concentration, primary production and environmental conditions in the subtropical East China Sea. Deep-Sea Res. II, 50, 1219–1236.
Honjo, S., K. O. Emery and S. Yamamoto (1974): Non-combustible suspended matter in surface waters off eastern Asia. Sedimentology, 21, 555–575.
Huh, C.-A. and C.-C. Su (1999): Sedimentation dynamics in the East China Sea elucidated from 210Pb, 137Cs and 239,240Pu. Mar. Geol., 160, 183–196.
Hung, J.-J. and C.-L. Chan (1998): Distribution and enrichment of particulate trace metals in the southern East China Sea. Geochem. J., 32, 189–203.
Hung, J.-J., C.-S. Lin, G.-W. Hung and Y.-C. Chung (1999): Lateral transport of lithogenic particles from the continental margin of the southern East China Sea. Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci., 49, 483–499.
Hung, J.-J., P.-L. Lin and K.-K. Liu (2000): Dissolved and particulate organic carbon in the southern East China Sea. Cont. Shelf Res., 20, 545–549.
Hung, J.-J., C.-S. Lin, Y.-C. Chung, G.-W. Hung and W.-S. Liu (2003): Lateral fluxes of biogenic particles through the Mien-Hua canyon in the southern East China Sea slope. Cont. Shelf Res., 23, 935–955.
Hur, H. B., G. A. Jacobs and W. J. Teague (1999): Monthly variations of water masses in the Yellow and East China Seas. J. Oceanogr., 55, 171–184.
Li, Y.-H. (1994): Material exchange between the East China Sea and the Kuroshio current. Terrest. Atmos. Ocean. Sci., 5, 625–631.
Li, Y.-H., H. Teraoka, T. S. Young and J. S. Chen (1984): The elemental composition of suspended particles from the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 48, 1561–1564.
Lin, S., I.-J. Hsieh, K.-M. Huang and C.-H Wang (2002): Influence of the Yangtze River and grain size on the spatial variations of heavy metals and organic carbon in the East China Sea continental shelf sediments. Chem. Geol., 182, 377–394.
Liu, J. P., K. H. Xu, A. C. Li, J. D. Milliman, D. M. Velozzi, S. B. Xiao and Z. S. Yang (2007): Flux and fate of Yangtze River sediment delivered to the East China Sea. Geomorphology (in press).
Liu, K.-K., G.-C. Gong, S. Lin, C.-Y. Yang, C.-L. Wei, S.-C. Pai and C.-K. Wu (1992): The year-round upwelling at the shelf break near the northern tip of Taiwan as evidenced by chemical hydrography. Terrest. Atmos. Ocean. Sci., 3, 243–276.
Liu, S., X. Shen, Y. Wang and S. Han (1992): Preliminary analysis of distribution and variations of perennial monthly mean water masses in the Bohai Sea, the Huanghe Sea and the East China Sea. Acta Oceanol. Sinica, 11(4), 483–498.
Milliman, J. D. and R. H. Meade (1983): World wide delivery of river sediment to the oceans. J. Geol., 91, 1–21.
Milliman, J. D., Q. Xie and Z. Yang (1984): Transfer of organic carbon and nitrogen from the Yangtze River to the ocean. Am. J. Sci., 284, 824–834.
Milliman, J. D., H. T. Shen, Z. S. Yang and R. H. Meade (1985a): Transport and deposition of river sediment in Changjiang estuary and adjacent continental shelf. Cont. Shelf Res., 4, 37–45.
Milliman, J. D., R. C. Beardsley, Z.-S. Yang and R. Limeburner (1985b): Modern Huang-derived muds on the outer shelf of the East China Sea: identification and potential transport mechanisms. Cont. Shelf Res., 4, 175–188.
Nitani, H. (1972): The beginning of the Kuroshio. p. 129–156. In Kuroshio, ed. by H. Stommel and K. Yoshida, Univ. of Tokyo Press, Japan.
Nittrouer, C. A. and D. Wright (1994): Transport of particles across continental shelves. Rev. Geophys., 32, 85–113.
Peng, T.-H., J.-J. Hung, R. Wanninkhof and F. J. Millero (1999): Carbon budget in the East China Sea in spring. Tellus B, 51, 531–540.
Qu, C. and R. Yan (1990): Chemical composition and factors controlling suspended matter in three major Chineses rivers. Sci. Total Environ., 97/98, 335–346.
Ren, M. E. and Y.-L. Shi (1986): Sediment discharges of the Yellow River (China) and its effect on the sedimentation of the Bohai and Yellow Sea. Cont. Shelf Res., 6, 785–810.
Sheu, D. D., W.-C. Jou, M.-J. Chen, W.-Y. Lee and S. Lin (1995): Variations of calcium carbonate, organic carbon and their isotopic compositions in surface sediments of the East China Sea. Terrest. Atmos. Ocean. Sci., 6, 115–128.
Su, Y. S. and S. Weng (1994): Watermasses in China Sea. p. 3–16. In Oceanology of China Seas, Vol. 1, ed. by D. Zhou et al., Klumer Academic Publishers.
Tang, T. Y., Y. Hsueh, Y. J. Yang and J. C. Ma (1999): Continental slope flow northeast of Taiwan. J. Phys. Oceanogr., 29, 1353–1362.
Taylor, S. R. (1964): Abundance of chemical elements in the continental crust: a new table. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 28, 1273–1285.
Walling, D. E. and D. Fang (2003): Recent trends in the suspended sediment loads of the world’s rivers. Glob. Planet. Change, 39, 111–126.
Walsh, J. J., P. E. Biscaye and G. T. Csanady (1988): The 1983–1984 Shelf Edge Exchange Processes (SEEP-I) experiment: hypotheses and highlights. Cont. Shelf Res., 8, 435–456.
Wang, H., Z. Yang, Y. Saito, P. Liu and X. Sun (2006): The Huanghe (Yellow River) water discharge over the past 50 years: Connections to impacts from ENSO events and dams. Glob. Planet. Change, 50, 212–225.
Wong, G. T. F., S. C. Pai, K. K. Liu and C. T. A. Chen (1991): Variability of the chemical hydrography at the frontal region between the East China Sea and the Kuroshio northeast of Taiwan. Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci., 33, 105–120.
Wu, Y., J. Zhang, D. J. Li and R. X. Lu (2003): Isotope variability of particulate organic matter at the PN section in the East China Sea. Biogeochem., 65, 31–49.
Xie, Q.-c. and Y. Li (1988): Behaviors of suspended matter in the Changjiang estuary. p. 89–98. In Proceedings on the International Symposium on Biogeochemical Study of the Changjiang Estuary and its Adjacent Coastal Waters of the East China Sea, China Ocean Press, Beijing.
Xie, Q.-c., L.-r. Zhang and F.-g. Zhou (1983): Features and transportation of suspended matter over the continental shelf of Changjiang estuary. p. 400–412. In Proceedings on the International Symposium on Sedimentation on the Continental Shelf with Special Reference to the East China Sea, Vol. 1, China Ocean Press, Beijing.
Yanagi, T., S. Takahashi, A. Hoshika and T. Tanimoto (1996): Seasonal variation in the transport of suspended matter in the East China Sea. J. Oceanogr., 52, 539–552.
Yang, Z.-S. and J. D. Milliman (1983): Find-grained sediments of the Changjiang and Huanghe rivers and sediment sources of East China Sea. p. 436–446. In Proceedings on the International Symposium on Sedimentation on the Continental Shelf with Special Reference to the East China Sea, Vol. 1, China Ocean Press, Beijing.
Yang, Z.-S., J. D. Milliman, J. Galler, J. P. Liu and X.-G. Sun (1998): Yellow River’s water and sediment discharge decreasing steadily. EOS, 79(48).
Yang, Z., H. Wang, Y. Saito, J. D. Milliman, K. Xu, S. Qiao and G. Shi (2006): Dam impacts on the Changjiang (Yangtze) River sediment discharge to the sea: The past 55 years and after the Three Gorges Dam. Water Resources Research, 42, W04407, doi:10, 1029/2005 WR003970.
Zhang, J. and C.-L. Liu (2002): Riverine composition and estuarine geochemistry of particulate metals in China—weathering features, anthropogenic impact and chemical fluxes. Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci., 54, 1051–1070.
Zhang, J., W. W. Huang and M. C. Shi (1990): Huanghe and its estuary: sediment origin, transport and deposition. J. Hydrology, 120, 203–223.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hung, JJ., Chan, CL. & Gong, GC. Summer distribution and geochemical composition of suspended-particulate matter in the east china sea. J Oceanogr 63, 189–202 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10872-007-0021-x
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10872-007-0021-x