Trace elements behaviors in freezing process of alkaline lakes in Mongolia

Abstract

In the Valley of Gobi Lakes of Mongolia, there are alkaline saline lakes containing high abundance of carbonate. Evaporations and freezing of those lakes have caused elemental partitioning among ice, lake water, and sediments. We performed field surveys and geochemical modeling for the lakes in winter to investigate behaviors of trace elements, such as arsenic, uranium, and phosphor. Our results show that adsorptions onto Fe-oxide particles and entrapments into ice would different enrichments for elements in lake waters.