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This study illustrates the textural, mineralogical and geochemical signatures of sediments from the upper Yellow River. Sediments of major tributaries have also been examined to study the influence of provenance, weathering intensity, and hydraulic sorting on the spatial compositional variability of sediments. Similarly to floodplain sediments, riverbed deposits are strongly depleted in MgO and Na 2 O, and enriched in CaO and Si 2 O relative to the upper-continental-crust standard. The pattern of rare earth elements (REE) indicates LREE enrichment and negative Eu anomaly (Eu/Eu* = 0.54–0.68). Low CIA (Chemical Index of Alteration) values indicate that the sediments from the trunk-river channel, floodplain, and major tributaries have not experienced intense chemical weathering in arid to semi-arid climatic conditions. The distribution of chemical elements shows a significant increase of Zr and Hf with coarsening of grain-size, whereas Rb, Ni, and V are associated with finer sediment fractions supplied by adjacent dune fields and tributaries. The Al/Si ratio (a proxy for grain size) correlates positively with CIA, Fe 2 O 3 , MgO, and K 2 O, but not with Na 2 O, reflecting grain-size control. Clay mineral assemblages in the upper Yellow River and in tributaries draining the Loess Plateau (e.g., Qingshui and Zuli Rivers) are dominated by illite and chlorite, whereas the abundance of smectite characterizes the middle reaches of the Yellow River and the Ten tributaries draining the Ordos Plateau. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The upper–middle Yellow River flows through the Fenwei graben, a structure resulting from extensional tectonism that was formed and repeatedly extended during the Cenozoic. The drainage system within this graben was formerly isolated from the lower reaches of the Yellow River system by the Xiaoshan mountains, an actively growing ∼ NW–SE trending range. The modern course of the Yellow River takes it through this range along the Sanmen gorge, the formation of which was of great significance in that it initiated through-going drainage between the upper–middle and lower reaches of the system. The timing of this event, which was clearly a critical point in the evolution of the Yellow River, can be established by dating the terraces in the gorge. Intermittent deepening of this gorge by the Yellow River from a high-level planation surface capping the mountain range has resulted in the formation of five terraces. Magnetostratigraphic records from aeolian deposits accumulated on these surfaces provide a geochronological sequence for this geomorphic archive, in which the ages of the planation surface and of terraces T5, T4, T3, T2, and T1 have been determined as ∼3.63 Ma, ∼1.24 Ma, ∼0.86 Ma, ∼0.62 Ma, ∼129 ka, and ∼12 ka, respectively. Under the constraint of this chronological framework, a model for landscape evolution is proposed here. Uplift of the inner Fenwei graben and of the surrounding mountain ranges led to dissection of the 3.63 Ma old planation surface in conjunction with the formation of the Sanmen gorge. Drainage of the lake previously occupying the basin would have promoted incision into the fluvio-lacustrine graben sediments; indeed, gorge formation through the Xiaoshan may have been initiated or intensified by lake overflow. The ages obtained for the planation surface and uppermost terrace suggest that the formation of the Sanmen gorge and the initiation of the through-going eastward drainage of the Yellow River occurred between 3.63 and 1.24 Ma. Before the start of gorge entrenchment, the products of erosion in the modern upper catchment of the Yellow River were unable to reach the sea. The dramatic increase in deposition rates in the Bohai Gulf (at the mouth of the modern Yellow River in the East China Sea), ∼1.0 Ma ago, thus resulted from the initiation of an integral (enlarged) Yellow River catchment drainage through the Sanmen gorge; it does not imply an increase in erosion rates at that time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In North China, the Ordos block located northeast of the Tibetan Plateau is regarded as a stable craton surrounded by the Yinchuan graben to the west, the Hetao graben to the north, and the Fenwei graben to the southeast. The major tectonic structure around this block in the Cenozoic reflects intensive extension as a response to the eastward extrusion of the Tibetan Plateau. Intermittent downcutting by the Yellow River, starting from the planation surface level on the Ordos block and penetrating the bedrock, resulted in the formation of the Jinshaan gorge. A series of well-preserved fluvial terraces was identified along this gorge, providing new insight into the far-field effect of the eastward extrusion of the Tibetan Plateau. Magnetostratigraphic records from the planation surface and uppermost terrace suggest that this gorge has been entrenched over its total length in the period from 3.7 to 1.2 Ma. A preliminary explanation is proposed here for the morphological evolution of the Yellow River in the Jinshaan gorge. On the basis of terrace correlation between seventeen geomorphic sections, multiwave headward erosion initiated by the Yellow River along this gorge has been reconstructed. This process may be attributed to the lowering of the base level (the Fenwei graben). This graben has been formed during the Cenozoic as the Tibetan Plateau extruded eastwards resulting in accelerated ground subsidence. A combined approach of magnetostratigraphy, pedostratigraphy, and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) was adopted to establish a new geochronology for terraces in the gorge at 1.2 Ma, 1.1 Ma, 787 ka, 412 ka, 245 ka, 128 ka, 29 ka, and 11 ka. These ages provide an excellent framework for calculating the extension within the Fenwei graben. The average incision rate appears to be enhanced significantly since 412 ka, indicating a rapid extension within the Fenwei graben during this time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of problems, resulting from sediment deposition and channel silting, have occurred on the Hetao Plain as a result of changes to the Hobq Desert reach of the Yellow River. Therefore, improved research on channel evolution in this reach is vitally important. Using profile data from 80 channel cross-sections obtained in 1962, 1982, 1991 and 2000 from the Yellow River in the Hobq Desert, we showed that there was serious sediment deposition here (especially for the tributary section in the eastern desert) and that maximum sediment deposition occurred during 1982–1991. As sediment was deposited along the mobile channel, the channel trunk shrank and moved to the north. The characteristics of river channel evolution are dramatically different between the western and the eastern Hobq Desert reaches of the Yellow River, which include desert and the tributary sections, respectively. Erosion mainly occurred in the desert section, whereas sediment deposition occurred in the tributary section, with peak values at the mouths of on Yellow River tributaries. The desert section had a larger average erosion rate and smaller accumulation rate than the tributary section. The influences of tectonic movement and stream gradient on channel evolution in this fluvial reach were minimal. The sediment inputs from ten Yellow River tributaries (especially during flood seasons) have dominated channel evolution in these tributaries. The building of artificial levées has intensified sediment deposition in the channel, whereas the reduction of mainstream discharge (especially in the flood seasons), caused by the operation of reservoirs and water diversion activities (such as for agricultural irrigation), has further intensified the sediment deposition in the river channel. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Ningxia–Inner Mongolia (NIM) reaches of the Yellow River are characterized by a high sediment load, severe siltation, large channel migration, and frequent dike breaching, resulting in substantial social, economic, and environmental problems for residents along the river. Therefore, studies on the grain-size characteristics of sediments in the NIM reaches of the Yellow River and locating the primary sediment source areas are important for the prevention and mitigation of silt accumulation and the construction of water conservation facilities. In this study, 361 samples from the Yellow River and 178 samples from potential source areas were analyzed. Large grain sizes in the riverbed and floodplain materials were found in the desert sections and in sections containing 10 tributaries, respectively. The size of the riverbed and floodplain materials fluctuates relatively frequently in the tributary sections and is coarser at confluences of the tributaries with the Yellow River. The floodplain material is better sorted than the riverbed material, and the sorting coefficients (especially the former) fluctuate most widely in the tributaries sections. Two main fractions of the floodplain and most of the riverbed materials in the major river reaches are observed: 3.9–63 μm and 63–250 μm. The first fraction component of the riverbed material, 63–250 μm, is found in the desert sections and part of the tributary sections, whereas the second fraction component (250–500 μm) is found in some parts of the desert sections. The variations in the size characteristics of the riverbed and floodplain materials demonstrate that both materials are derived from lateral sources. The main sources of the riverbed materials are the Ulan Buh Desert and the Kubuqi Desert in the Wuhai-Zhonghexi reaches, and the main sources of the riverbed and floodplain materials are the 10 tributaries in the Zhonghexi-Lama Bay reaches. The riverbed and floodplain materials in the desert sections are deposited near the source and far from the source, respectively. Both types of sediments in the tributary sections are mainly deposited near their sources. Through wind and hydraulic sorting, the size of the riverbed material in the tributaries sections becomes finer in contrast to that in the desert sections, which suggests that coarse sediments have not been effectively carried downstream. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The key to understanding the fluvial response to climate change and surface uplift is a thorough distinguishing between their roles in terrace formation. Previous studies have tended to attribute the fluvial behavior of deposit–incision alternation to climate cyclicity. A preliminary explanation is proposed here for terrace formation in the eastern part of the Fenwei Basin, China. The observed fluvial terrace sequence was developed by the Yellow River deeply downcutting into the Emei Platform, which was uplifted within the eastern Fenwei Basin, and therefore it probably records the tectonic history of this platform. On the basis of the magnetostratigraphy and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating, a ca. 1.2Ma chronology was established for this terrace sequence. Pedostratigraphic analysis of the loess deposits accumulated on each tread reveals that the terrace deposits are overlain immediately by a paleosol bed, suggesting that the abandonment of these terraces due to fluvial incision occurred at the transitions from glacial to interglacial climates. The glacial–interglacial climate cycle probably has a temporal control on the fluvial behavior of deposit–incision alternation, even though the Yellow River develops in the subsiding Fenwei Basin. The terrace generation may be sporadic and in the form of unusual stacked pattern before the Emei Platform was uplifted within the eastern Fenwei Basin. The terrace staircases however, formed in synchrony with glacial–interglacial climate cycles since this platform began to uplift in the late Middle Pleistocene. This result indicates that uplift may be necessary in large terrace staircase genesis. It can force the river system to downcut deeply enough during climatic transitions to separate terrace levels adequately, favoring the generation and subsequent preservation of the terrace treads. The terrace sequence of the Yellow River in the eastern Fenwei Basin therefore can be considered as a combined archive of climate change and local tectonic activity. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Yellow River (Huang He) downstream of the Jinshaan Canyon displays well-preserved fluvial terrace sequences below an extensive planation surface at the northeastern Ordos Plateau. Despite a series of well developed geomorphic surfaces, the landscape evolution of the plateau is largely unconstrained. The Jinshaan Canyon, formed by the deeply incising Yellow River through the Ordos Plateau, provides keys to understanding the landscape evolution of this Plateau with respect to the nearby northeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau. This paper presents two sets of magnetostratigraphic results derived from the aeolian deposits (Red Clay and loess) on the planation surface and the uppermost Yellow River terrace in the middle part of the Jinshaan Canyon. Magnetostratigraphic analysis reveals that the planation surface and the uppermost Yellow River terrace formed respectively at circa 3.7Ma and circa 1.2Ma ago. The Ordos Plateau is the product of a period of planation culminating just before circa 3.7Ma and then was interrupted by an episode of uplift, which may be correlated with the accelerated growth of the Tibetan Plateau in the Miocene–Pliocene. The drainage system in the Jinshaan Canyon was re-organized around 3.7Ma. No correlation seems to exist between an older drainage existing prior to circa 3.7Ma and the present Yellow River network in the Jinshaan Canyon, even though sedimentary and tectonic evidence suggests that the drainage in the middle reach of the Yellow River formed in the late Miocene-early Pliocene. The Yellow River has developed its rectangular course around the Ordos Plateau only since circa 3.7Ma. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: A continuous fluviolacustrine record provides the geochronological framework to reconstruct the fluvial landscape evolution of the middle reach of the Huanghe (Yellow River). Magnetostratigraphic records from six sections at the north of the Jinshaan Gorge indicate that an isolated fluviolacustrine system occupied this gorge from 8.3 to 3.7Ma. Local fluvial incision initiated at the lake margin around 5.3-4.9Ma, and concomitant fluvial deposits intruded laterally into fine lacustrine strata increasing the sedimentation rate (ca. 3.1cm/ky) within the isolated lake. The temporal coincidence of the onset of uplift-driven valley incision at 3.7Ma along the Yellow River and the onset of basin excavation suggest that uplift possibly played an important role in the late Pliocene-Quaternary drainage evolution. Consequently, incision of the Yellow River upstream in the Jinshaan Gorge initiated at 3.7Ma. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The competing roles of bedrock uplift and climatic change in the formation of fluvial terraces remain uncertain. Most of recent studies have attributed terrace formation to climatic changes and held that, even in tectonically active settings, climate variations control cycles of terrace planation and abandonment. Based on field investigations of loess-paleosol sequences, magnetostratigraphy and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating, we develop a new chronology for a spectacular flight of terraces along the Yellow River near Lanzhou, China over past 1.24Ma. All the terraces are strikingly similar in that they have several meters of paleosol developed directly above fluvial deposits on the terrace treads, suggesting that the abandonment of each terrace due to river incision occurs during the transition from glacial to interglacial climates. However, the ages of terraces cluster in two relatively short time periods (1.24–0.86Ma and 0.13Ma – present). During the intervening time between 0.86Ma and 0.13Ma, terraces either did not form or were not preserved. We suggest that this record indicates that rock uplift rates varied through time and influenced terrace formation/preservation. Thus, our results demonstrate the utility of deep chronologic records from fluvial terraces for deconvolving the effects of tectonics and climate on fluvial incision. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Based on the aeolian loess sequence-stratigraphic division and paleomagnetic datings on terraces, we found that an undiscovered terrace with the age of 1.0 Ma BP lies between the Dunwashan terrace and Wuyishan terrace. This terrace recorded an intensive Yellow River incision event during that period. Results of paleomagnetic dating and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating of the Wuyishan loess section and Zaoshugou loess section on the fourth Yellow River terrace (T4) show that the age of the fourth Yellow River terrace in Lanzhou area is 0.86 Ma BP rather than the previously believed 0.6 Ma BP. This result answers a long-term question in the geomorphology community of whether there exists a 0.8 Ma terrace in Lanzhou area. The discovery of the 1.0 Ma Yellow River terrace and redating of the age of 0.6 Ma terrace in Lanzhou area provide new insights into further research on the evolution of Yellow River. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Analysis of morphological properties in the San men Gorges region of the Yellow River shows that four river terraces have been developed at the entrance to the gorges. Commonly, thick aeolian loess-paleosol sequence was deposited on the terraces, which makes it easy to date the terraces. The dating of paleomagnetic, loess-paleosol sequence matching and thermoluminescence show that terraces T2, T3 and T4 were formed 0.129 Ma, 0.625 Ma and 0.865 Ma ago, respectively. The formation of these terraces in this region indicates that the Yellow River has experienced four intensive downcutting events during the last 0.9 Ma. The Yellow River cut through the Sanmen Gorges and inpoured into the East China Sea no later than 0.865 Ma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the east of Xiaolangdi, many river terraces are developed at the exit of the Yellow River Gorges. Among them the terraces in Kouma, Yanshi of Henan Province are most typical, where the Yellow River developed three staircase terraces, among which the altitude of gravel stratum of the topmost terrace is 30-35 m higher than the river level. The top of the gravel stratum was covered by 60 m eolian loess deposits which have many brownish-red paleosol strips. And the paleosol S14 is at its bottom. Research on systematic magnetostratigraphy and paleosol-loess matching indicates that the bottom age of the loess on the topmost terrace is 1165 ka. Therefore, it can be concluded that the terrace develops no later than 1.165 Ma and the situation that the Yellow River runs through Sanmen Gorges and inpours into East China Sea happened at least before 1.165 Ma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Burial dating using cosmogenic 26Al and 10Be is an emerging technique for establishing chronologies of fluvial deposits ranging in age from ca. 0.5 Ma to 5 Ma. The determination of burial age, however, requires an assumption that sediment is buried with a known initial 26Al/10Be ratio. Using a sequence of well-dated fluvial terraces along the Yellow River in Lanzhou, China, we demonstrate that this assumption may be violated when upstream sediment sources include Neogene sedimentary basins. Samples of fluvial gravel from six terraces yield burial ages ranging from ca. 0.83 Ma to 2.81 Ma. Comparison of these results to independent ages determined from magneto stratigraphic and loess-paleosol studies demonstrates a high degree of correspondence between ages in the lower three terraces. In the higher terraces, however, burial ages are systematically too old, implying a previous burial history. These results can be exploited to place quantitative constraints on the provenance of sediment in the terrace deposits . Our results reveal that rapid incision and excavation of late Neogene sedimentary basins ca. 1.7 Ma led to injection of fluvial sediment with low initial26 Al/10 Be ratios. Dilution of this source through time occurred as incision progressed into upstream bedrock ranges. Our results suggest that cosmogenic nuclides can illuminate the timing of long-term storage and remobilization of sediment in continental-scale river systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surface sediment samples concurrently collected in the catchment of the Ningxia-Inner Mongolian reach of Yellow River (NIMYR) were analyzed to determine the phosphorus and correlated physiochemical properties of sediments. Samples were obtained from three main areas: the riverbed surface sediment (RSS), the floodplain surface sediment (FSS) and the desert surface sediment (DSS). The sequence of phosphorus-contamination level in this catchment, determined by a cumulative distribution function and multivariate statistical analysis, were FSS > RSS > DSS. Moreover, because of the impacts of anthropogenic activities, the sampling site with the highest and lowest phosphorus concentration (mg kg − 1 ) of this catchment appeared in RSS (749.40) and DSS (200.10) respectively. In addition, this is the first study to present a qualification of the effect of the sediment's physicochemical properties on phosphorus by the multivariate regression tree analysis. Co-precipitation of phosphate with calcite [i], phosphate absorbed onto ferric hydroxides [ii] and grain-size effect [iii] were the three main mechanisms for phosphorus distribution in the sediment of NIMYR. The contributions of these three mechanisms to RSS and FSS were, respectively, [i] > [iii] > [ii] and [i] > [ii] > [iii]. The heaviest phosphorus-contaminated group of RSS was primarily controlled by [i], whereas the heaviest phosphorus-contaminated group of FSS was controlled by [i] and [ii], indicating that the FSS had a higher potential risk of releasing phosphorus from the sediment to overlying water. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]