Provenance and Paleoenvironment Impact on Arsenic Accumulation in Aquifer Sediments from the Datong Basin, China: Implications from Element Geochemistry

High As aquifer sediments from the Datong Basin, China have been analyzed to indentify the provenance and depositional environment related to As accumulation in the sediments. Evidence from discrimination diagrams show that the sediments were derived from typical continental sources. Geochemical signatures suggest that the provenance of the sediments remained similar throughout the depositional period. In contrast, the distribution of Eu/Eu* ratios along the borehole requires an obvious change in the paleoenvironment. The co-variation of As contents and Rb/Ti ratios along the borehole suggests that the accumulation of As in sediments is mainly controlled by the paleoenvironment.