Abstract:
The sulfur isotopic (δ
34S-SO
42-) composition of the water in Wujiang river and its catchment area was measured during high-flow period.The average SO
42- concentration is 0.48 mmol/L.The river water δ
34S values range from -11.5‰ to 8.3‰,whereas the δ
34S values of mainstream show only a narrow range and exhibit negative values from -6.7‰ to -3.9‰.The isotopic composition of surface water allows distinguishing the contribution due to the weathering rock and atmospheric precipitation,and the spatial variation in δ
34S over the catchment area is obvious.The average SO
42- concentration is higher in the upper part of the river than in the lower regions,while the average δ
34S value is lower.The upper river shows a three end 2 member mixing between rainwater SO
42-,SO
42- from oxidation of pyrite in coal and the sulfide deposits.In the lower reaches,the samples lie mainly on the isotopic mixing trend between the evaporitic SO
42- and rainwater SO
42-,the contribution of SO
42- from oxidation of pyrite is less.The SO
42- export flux of Wujiang river is 172×10
10 g/a,of which the high-flow period export flux accounts for 80%.the relative contributions from the oxidation of pyrite in coal,the oxidation of sulfides deposits,the rainwater SO
42- and the evaporitic SO
42- are 50%,25%,20% and 5%,respectively.The erosion rate of carbonate by sulfuric acid is 35.1 t/km
2/a (17.5 mm/ka) and the consumption rate reducing CO
2 is 3.66×10
5 mol/km
2/a approximately.