Abstract
We investigated the distributions of phosphate (PO4-P) and used the oxygen isotope composition of phosphate (δ18OP) to quantify PO4-P sources in the waters of Huangbai River. According to the environmental characteristics of Huangbai River basin, the sampling stations in the Huangbai River were divided into three groups: sampling stations in the phosphate mining area, in the outcrop area of phosphate rock, and in the residential/agricultural area. The average PO4-P concentration was highest (2.34 ± 1.00 μmol/L) in the outcrop area of phosphate ore, intermediate in the residential/agricultural area (1.06 ± 1.21 μmol/L), and lowest in the phosphate mining area (0.58 ± 0.31 μmol/L). The δ18OP measured in the Huangbai River waters ranged from 6.0 to 20.9‰, with the highest average value in the outcrop area of phosphate rock (average: 14.6‰ ± 3.1‰). The majority of the measured δ18OP values in the Huangbai River deviated greatly from the expected equilibrium values, indicating that δ18OP in this area could be used to trace PO4-P sources. We used two end-member mixing models to quantify the contribution of PO4-P from different sources. In the phosphate mining area, the average fractions of PO4-P from phosphate ore and sewage were 49.5% ± 23.8% and 50.5% ± 23.8%, respectively. In the outcrop area of phosphate rock, the average fractions of PO4-P from phosphate ore and sewage were 60.1% ± 21.7% and 39.9% ± 21.7%, respectively. In the residential/agricultural area, the average fractions of PO4-P from fertilizer and sewage were 49.2% ± 23.2% and 50.8% ± 23.2%, respectively. These results indicate that phosphate mining activities was not an important source for PO4-P in the waters of Huangbai River. The natural weathering of phosphate rock, fertilization, and domestic sewage contributed more to the high PO4-P concentrations in the Huangbai River waters.
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Xin Zhou, Chunqing Chen, Peiwang Bian, Xuan Lu, Jiacheng Li, and Ziyun Deng from Guangdong Ocean University for the sampling work and experimental analysis.
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The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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This work was supported by the Project of China Geological Survey (grant number DD20190823), the Open Fund of Hubei Key Laboratory of Paleontology and Geological Environment Evolution (grant number PEL-202001) and the Foundation for Young Talents in General Colleges and Universities of Guangdong Province (grant number 2019KQNCX044).
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Kai Wei: Conceptualization, methodology, formal analysis, investigation, resources, data curation, writing—original draft, supervision
Xiongwei Zeng: Conceptualization, investigation, writing—reviewing and editing, resources, supervision
Chuanshang Wang: Methodology, investigation, project administration
Zhongqin Peng: Methodology, investigation
Jianpo Wang: Methodology, investigation
Fengxia Zhou: Conceptualization, formal analysis, writing—original draft, writing—reviewing and editing, data curation, visualization
Fajin Chen: Investigation, writing—reviewing and editing, methodology, resources
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Wei, K., Zeng, X., Wang, C. et al. Phosphate distribution and sources in the waters of Huangbai River, China: using oxygen isotope composition of phosphate as a tracer. Environ Sci Pollut Res 28, 29732–29741 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-12808-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-12808-x