Universität zu Köln

Francke, Alexander ORCID: 0000-0002-0370-5802, Dosseto, Anthony ORCID: 0000-0002-3575-0106, Just, Janna, Wagner, Bernd ORCID: 0000-0002-1369-7893 and Jones, Brian G. (2020). Assessment of the controls on (U-234/U-238) activity ratios recorded in detrital lacustrine sediments. Chem. Geol., 550. AMSTERDAM: ELSEVIER. ISSN 1872-6836

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Abstract

Understanding landscape evolution on geological time scales has become increasingly important in the light of recent climate warming and intensified land use. Uranium isotopes ((U-234/ U-238) activity ratios) can be used to reconstruct catchment-wide erosion from fine-grained detrital matter, as the lighter nuclide U-234 is lost from grains <63 mu m into surrounding pore space in a weathering profile, during transportation, and after final deposition. Thus, (U-234/U-238) activity ratios are a measure for the time elapsed since comminution of bedrock into detrital sediment. When applied to detrital grains in sedimentary deposits, the comminution age allows derivation of past variations in sediment residence time, i.e. the amount of time for which sediments are stored on hillslopes and transported. Loss of U-234 is mainly attributed to recoil of Th-234 during alpha-decay of U-238. However, mobilisation of U-234 is also controlled by preferential oxidation and leaching of U-234 from detrital grains. Further considerations are required concerning the sediment mineralogy and uranium bound to authigenic or endogenic matter. Here, we extend the discussion about the controls on previously published (U-234/U-238) activity ratios and uranium concentrations of detrital matter along a 5.43 m-long, Late Glacial to Holocene sedimentary record from Lake Ohrid (North Macedonia, Albania). Lake Ohrid is chosen to study how erosion responds to anthropogenic disturbances and climate variability, which are common through the Late Pleistocene and Holocene in the Mediterranean Region. We compared uranium concentration and isotope data to redox-sensitive, mineralogical and biogeochemical proxies. Mineralogical and biogeochemical data show no control on uranium concentration and (U-234/U-238) activity ratios. Rock magnetic redox proxies indicate uranium mobilisation from detrital matter in more oxic environments. No correlation between (U-234/U-238) activity ratios and rock magnetic data is observed, which implies that the redox environment has no control on the isotope signal. Monte Carlo simulations reveal that post-depositional preferential mobilisation of U-234 has only negligible impact on the calculated sediment residence times. Our model implies that pre-depositional leaching can results in shorter sediment residence times but low (U-234/U-238) activity ratios during cold and dry intervals imply that recoil is likely the main processes explaining loss of U-234 from the detrital grain. This is explained by the time scales studied herein in (>10,000 years), during which preferential leaching is seen to be not significant.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Creators:	Creators Email ORCID ORCID Put Code Francke, Alexander UNSPECIFIED orcid.org/0000-0002-0370-5802 UNSPECIFIED Dosseto, Anthony UNSPECIFIED orcid.org/0000-0002-3575-0106 UNSPECIFIED Just, Janna UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED Wagner, Bernd UNSPECIFIED orcid.org/0000-0002-1369-7893 UNSPECIFIED Jones, Brian G. UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED UNSPECIFIED
URN:	urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-318827
DOI:	10.1016/j.chemgeo.2020.119698
Journal or Publication Title:	Chem. Geol.
Volume:	550
Date:	2020
Publisher:	ELSEVIER
Place of Publication:	AMSTERDAM
ISSN:	1872-6836
Language:	English
Faculty:	Unspecified
Divisions:	Unspecified
Subjects:	no entry
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Keywords Language LAKE OHRID MACEDONIA; URANIUM-SERIES ISOTOPES; ORGANIC-MATTER; VEGETATION CONTROL; MAGNETIC MINERALS; RIVER SEDIMENTS; DISSOLUTION; TRANSPORT; DISEQUILIBRIUM; GEOCHEMISTRY Multiple languages Geochemistry & Geophysics Multiple languages
URI:	http://kups.ub.uni-koeln.de/id/eprint/31882