Geochemical characteristics and controlling factors of surface sediments in Jiaozhou Bay

Based on the correlation analysis and factor analysis of grain size and geochemical compositions of 150 surface sediments from Jiaozhou Bay, Qingdao, East China, the spatial distribution, element correlation, and element combination were studied, and the sedimentary environmental implication of geochemical characteristics of the in-bay sediments was revealed. The results show that the surface sediments are rich in types, mainly sandy silts in Jiaozhou Bay. The major elements of the sediments are predominated by SiO₂ and Al₂O₃, and the high value area of SiO₂ is mainly distributed in the northeast and west-central areas, and the content of Al₂O₃ is higher in the estuaries of the north and northeast of the bay and near the coast, indicating that the sediments are mainly terrigenous detrital sediments. The highest trace elements is V, followed by Li and Ni, and the content distribution is similar to that of Al₂O₃. Except for CaO, the spatial variation coefficients of the elements in the bay are small, indicating that the distribution of the elements was relatively uniform. The results of the correlation analysis and factor analysis suggest that the grain size is the main factor controlling the distribution of most major and trace elements (Al₂O₃, MgO, CaO, TiO₂, MnO, Fe₂O₃, Ni, Co, Li, W, V, etc.) in the bay. The contents of CaO and P₂O₅ are mainly affected by weathering and human activities.