title: The spatial distribution, accumulation and potential source of seldom monitored trace elements in sediments of Three Gorges Reservoir, China.
abstract: The alteration of hydrologic condition of Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR) after impoundment has caused numerous environmental changes. This study investigated the distribution, accumulation and potential sources of the seldom monitored trace elements (SMTEs) in sediments from three tributaries (ZY, MX and CT) and one mainstream (CJ) in TGR during different seasons. The average contents of most SMTEs excluding Sb in the winter were similar to that in the summer. For Sb, its average concentrations in the summer and winter were roughly six and three times higher than its background value, respectively. Contamination factor (CF) and geoaccumulation index (Igeo) demonstrated that most of the sediments were obviously contaminated by Sb. The enrichment factors (EF) of Ga and Sb were higher than 2.0, revealing the possible anthropogenic inputs; However, the EFs of other SMTEs were lower than 1.5, indicating the natural inputs. Correlation and principal component analysis suggested the most SMTEs were positively correlated with major elements (Cr, Mn, Cu, Zn, As, Cd and Pb) and clay contents, which implies that SMTEs had the same sources with these major metals, and the fine particles might be a major carrier for transporting SMTEs from the rivers to the TGR.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Simulation and Regulation of Water Cycle in River Basin, China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, Beijing 100038, China.|State Key Laboratory of Water Environment Simulation, School of Environment, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.
authors.forename: Lanfang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Simulation and Regulation of Water Cycle in River Basin, China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, Beijing 100038, China.|Department of Water Environment, China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, Beijing 100038, China.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Simulation and Regulation of Water Cycle in River Basin, China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, Beijing 100038, China.|Department of Water Environment, China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, Beijing 100038, China.
authors.forename: Huaidong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Department of Water Environment, China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, Beijing 100038, China.
authors.forename: Dongyu
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Water Environment Simulation, School of Environment, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.
authors.forename: Xin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Water Environment Simulation, School of Environment, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gao