Geochemistry of Sedimentary Processes and Provenance

The geochemistry of sedimentary processes and provenance examines the chemical transformations that sediments undergo from weathering of source rocks, through transport, deposition and post-depositional alteration. By analysing major, trace and isotopic compositions, researchers trace sediment origin, reconstruct palaeoenvironments and quantify weathering intensity. Key processes include mechanical erosion, chemical weathering, hydrodynamic sorting, diagenesis and authigenic mineral formation. Geochemical proxies—such as weathering indices, rare earth element (REE) distributions and isotopic ratios—reveal source lithology, tectonic setting and climatic influences. Detrital mineral studies, notably zircon U–Pb geochronology, provide robust age constraints and provenance signatures. Advances in high-resolution elemental mapping and multivariate modelling are refining our understanding of crustal recycling, sediment routing and basin evolution. Integration of field-based analyses with predictive compositional models has broadened applications in hydrocarbon exploration, mineral resource assessment and environmental monitoring, underlining the global significance of sedimentary geochemistry for Earth system science.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have applied multi-proxy geochemical analyses to reconstruct palaeoclimate and provenance from lacustrine sediments. Detailed examination of deep core samples from a temperate freshwater basin reveals vertical shifts in major oxide concentrations and magnetic susceptibility that record environmental changes during the Little Ice Age. Chemical weathering indicators—namely the Chemical Index of Alteration, Weathering Index of Parker and Plagioclase Index of Alteration—were correlated with elemental ratios (Th/U, Sc/Th, Rb/Sr) to infer a cold, dry climate and an intermediate-to-felsic source lithology. Integrated trends in magnetization and mean grain size provide direct evidence for climate-driven variations in sediment supply and basin hydrodynamics.

Geochemistry of Sedimentary Processes and Provenance publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in geochemistry of sedimentary processes and provenance across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Provenance: The original source region or rock type from which sediments are derived.

Chemical Index of Alteration (CIA): A molar ratio of Al₂O₃ to CaO + Na₂O + K₂O that quantifies the intensity of chemical weathering.

Rare Earth Elements (REE): A group of 15 lanthanide elements plus yttrium and scandium, used as sensitive tracers of source rock composition and weathering processes.

Detrital Zircon U–Pb Geochronology: Age determination of detrital zircon grains via uranium–lead isotope ratios to constrain sediment source ages.

Principal Component Analysis (PCA): A statistical technique that reduces complex geochemical data sets into orthogonal components representing key compositional trends.

References

1. Correlations of chemical weathering indicators with major chemical constituents in sediments to obtain palaeoclimate information from Chaohu Lake, China. Scientific Reports (2024).
2. Geochemistry of fine-grained sediments in the Yangtze River and the implications for provenance and chemical weathering in East Asia. Progress in Earth and Planetary Science (2015).
3. Major Element Composition of Sediments in Terms of Weathering and Provenance: Implications for Crustal Recycling. Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems (2020).
4. Geochemistry of Recent Brahmaputra River Sediments: Provenance, Tectonics, Source Area Weathering and Depositional Environment. Minerals (2020).
5. Detrital zircon U–Pb geochronology and geochemistry of the Riachuelos and Palma Sola beach sediments, Veracruz State, Gulf of Mexico: a new insight on palaeoenvironment. Journal of Palaeogeography (2020).