Geochemical characteristics and paleo weathering in sediments of Noyyal River Basin, Tamilnadu–India

Year 2025, Volume: 8 Issue: 1, 152 - 160, 31.03.2025

Augustine Crispin , Purushothaman Parthasarathy

https://doi.org/10.35208/ert.1496178

Abstract

A geochemical study of surface sediment samples distributed in the Noyyal River basin in western Tamil Nadu was conducted for major oxides, parent rock source, and the extent of weathering. The Al2O3/TiO2 ratio of the samples ranged from (4.5-18) during monsoon and (3.94-32.14) during summer and fell in the category of mafic and intermediate igneous rocks during both seasons. The samples exhibited PIA with an average value of 64.80 during monsoon and 66.36 during summer. CIA values of the samples averaged 61.48 during monsoon and 62.35 during summer. The CIA vs. PIA, CIA vs. K/Na, and CIA vs. Al/Na for the studied samples for both seasons show low to intermediate silicate weathering in almost all locations. ICV values of samples averaged 49 during monsoon and 47 during summer suggesting that rock-forming minerals like plagioclase and alkali-feldspar are more prevalent and fewer clay minerals are present. The A-CN-K plot shows the weathering tendency towards muscovite and illite, and the A-C-N plot shows the parent rocks' plagioclases are low to intermediately weathered and the sediments gradually reduce albite and are enriched in weathering of anorthite parent material. The A-CNK-FM shows all the sediment samples lying below the feldspar region, indicating garnet and biotite presence.

Keywords

Geochemistry, Noyyal, Sediments, Weathering

References

• S. S. Babu, V. P. Rao, N. Satyasree, R. V. Ramana, M. R. Mohan, and S. Sawant, “Mineralogy and geochemistry of the sediments in rivers along the east coast of India: Inferences on weathering and provenance,” Journal of Earth System Science, Vol. 130(2), Article 60, 2021. [CrossRef]
• H. Dypvik, and N. B. Harris, “Geochemical facies analysis of fine-grained siliciclastics using Th/U, Zr/Rb and (Zr+Rb)/Sr ratios,” Chemical Geology, Vol. 181, pp. 131–146, 2001. [CrossRef]
• I. A. Mir, A. A. Bhat, M. Sreeprabash, V. Sridhar, and K. V. Maruthi, “Surface sediment geochemistry for understanding the recent sedimentary environment in northwestern Karnataka, south India,” Geosciences Journal, Vol. 26(6), pp. 669–683, 2022. [CrossRef]
• J. N. Pattan, I. A. Mir, G. Parthiban, S. G. Kurapurkar, V. M. Matta, P. D. Naidu, and S. W. A. Naqvi, “Coupling between suboxic condition in sediments of the western Bay of Bengal and southwest monsoon intensification: A geochemical study,” Chemical Geology, Vol. 343, pp. 55–66, 2013. [CrossRef]
• C. Maharana, D. Srivastava, and J. K. Tripathi, “Geochemistry of sediments of the Peninsular rivers of the Ganga basin and its implication to weathering, sedimentary processes and provenance,” Chemical Geology, Vol. 483, pp. 1–20, 2018. [CrossRef]
• M. Roddaz, J. Viers, S. Brusset, P. Baby, C. Boucayrand, and G. Hérail, “Controls on weathering and provenance in the Amazonian foreland basin: Insights from major and trace element geochemistry of Neogene Amazonian sediments,” Chemical Geology, Vol. 226(1–2), pp. 31–65, 2006. [CrossRef]
• M. He, H. Zheng, P. D. Clift, R. Tada, W. Wu, and C. Luo, “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, Vol. 2(1), Article 32, 2015. [CrossRef]
• M. Subramanian, J. Muthumanickam, S. Karthikeyan, V. Senapathi, P. M. Viswanathan, S. Sekar, and C. Sabarathinam, “Elemental geochemistry of surface sediments from Manakudy estuary, south-west coast of India: Inferences to sources of elements and their accumulation,” Geological Journal, Vol. 56(5), pp. 2360–2378, 2021. [CrossRef]
• W. Nadłonek, and I. Bojakowska, “Variability of chemical weathering indices in modern sediments of the vistula and odra rivers (Poland),” Applied Ecology and Environmental Research, Vol. 16(3), pp. 2453–2473, 2018. [CrossRef]
• A. Crispin, and P. Parthasarathy, “Seasonal influence on microplastics in the sediments of a non-perennial river - Noyyal, Tamil Nadu, India,” Environmental Science and Pollution Research, Vol. 30(43), pp. 97712–97722, 2023. [CrossRef]
• K. P. Kom, B. Gurugnanam, and V. Sunitha, “Delineation of groundwater potential zones using GIS and AHP techniques in Coimbatore district, South India,” International Journal of Energy and Water Resources, 2022. [CrossRef]
• B. Jay, and P. Arulraj, “A decision support system for identifying an optimal cropping pattern in noyyal river basin, Tamilnadu Energy Efficiency of Buildings View project Noyyal river basin View project,” 2010. [CrossRef]
• D. Karunanidhi, P. Aravinthasamy, T. Subramani, R. Chandrajith, N. Janardhana Raju, and I. M. H. R. Antunes, “Provincial and seasonal influences on heavy metals in the Noyyal River of South India and their human health hazards,” Environmental Research, Vol. 204, 2022. [CrossRef]
• B. J. Saikia, S. R. Goswami, R. Borthakur, I. B. Roy, and R. R. Borah, “Spectroscopic Characterization and Quantitative Estimation of Natural Weathering of Silicates in Sediments of Dikrong River, India,” Journal of Modern Physics, Vol. 06(11), pp. 1631–1641, 2015. [CrossRef]
• C. M. Fedo, H. Wayne Nesbitt, and G. M. Young, “Unraveling the effects of potassium metasomatism in sedimentary rocks and paleosols, with implications for paleoweathering conditions and provenance,” Geology, Vol. 23(10), Article 921, 1995. [CrossRef]
• H.W. Nesbitt and G.M. Young, “Early Proterozoic climates and plate motions inferred from major element chemistry of lutites,” Nature, Vol. 299, pp. 715–717, 1982. [CrossRef]
• R. Cox, D. R. Lowe, and R. L. Cullers’, “The influence of sediment recycling and basement composition on evolution of mudrock chemistry in the southwestern United States,” 1995. [CrossRef]
• R. L. Cullers and V. N. Podkovyrov, “The source and origin of terrigenous sedimentary rocks in the Mesoproterozoic Ui group, southeastern Russia,” Precambrian Research, Vol. 117(3–4), pp. 157–183, 2002. [CrossRef]
• R. K. Priya, V. C. Tewari, and R. K. Ranjan, “Permo-Carboniferous Climate Change: Geochemical Evidences from Lower Gondwana Glacial Sediments, Rangit Valley, Sikkim Lesser Himalaya, India,” Journal of Climate Change, Vol. 7(1), pp. 1–11, 2021. [CrossRef]
• J. Li, H. Gui, L. Chen, P. Fang, G. Li, and R. Li, “Geochemical characteristics, palaeoenvironment, and provenance of marine mudstone in Shanxi Formation of Huaibei Coalfield, southern North China Plate,” Geological Journal, Vol. 56(6), pp. 3064–3080, 2021. [CrossRef]
• K.-I. Hayashi, H. Fujisawa, H. D. Holland, and H. Ohmoto, “Geochemistry of ∼1.9 Ga sedimentary rocks from northeastern Labrador, Canada,” Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, Vol. 61(19), pp. 4115–4137, 1997. [CrossRef]
• C. Annen, J. D. Blundy, and R. S. J. Sparks, “The genesis of intermediate and silicic magmas in deep crustal Hot Zones,” Journal of Petrology, Vol. 47(3), pp. 505–539, 2006. [CrossRef]
• H. E. Huppert, R. Stephen, and J. Sparks, “Cooling and contamination of mafic and ultramafic magmas during ascent through continental crust,” Earth and Planetary Science Letters, Vol. 74(4), pp. 371–386, 1985. [CrossRef]
• P. D. Roy, M. Caballero, R. Lozano, and W. Smykatz-Kloss, “Geochemistry of late quaternary sediments from Tecocomulco lake, central Mexico: Implication to chemical weathering and provenance,” Chemie der Erde, Vol. 68(4), pp. 383–393, 2008. [CrossRef]
• J. E. Ogala, “Depositional conditions of the Upper Cretaceous shales from the Anambra Basin, SE Nigeria: Constraints from mineralogy and geochemistry,” Journal of African Earth Sciences, Vol. 196, Article 104670, 2022. [CrossRef]
• R. K. Priya, V. Tewari, and R. Ranjan, “Geochemical and Petrological Studies of Permo-Carboniferous Sandstones from the Rangit Pebble-Slate Formation, Sikkim Lesser Himalaya, India: Implication for Provenance, Tectonic Setting, and Paleoclimate,” Türkiye Jeoloji Bülteni / Geological Bulletin of Turkey, Vol. 64, pp. 129-142, 2020. [CrossRef]