Evaluation of boron isotopes in halite as an indicator of the salinity of Qarhan paleolake water in the eastern Qaidam Basin, western China

In this study, nineteen brine samples from the Qarhan Salt Lake (QSL) in western China were collected and analyzed for boron (B) and chlorine (Cl) concentrations, total dissolved solids (TDS), pH values and stable B isotopic compositions. The B concentrations and δ11B values of brines in the QSL range from 51.6 mg/L to 138.4 mg/L, and from +9.32‰ to +13.08‰, respectively. By comparison of B concentrations and TDS of brines in QSL with evaporation paths of brackish water, we found that B enrichment of brines primarily results from strong evaporation and concentration of Qarhan lake water. Combining with comparisons of B concentrations, TDS, pH values and δ11B values of brines, previously elemental ratios (K/Cl, Mg/Cl, Ca/Cl, B/Cl) and δ11B values of halite from a sediment core (ISL1A), we observe good correlations between B concentrations and TDS, TDS and pH values, pH and δ11B values of brines, which demonstrate that higher B concentrations and more positive δ11B values of halite indicate higher salinity of the Qarhan paleolake water as well as drier paleoclimatic conditions. Based on this interpretation of the δ11B values of halite in core ISL1A, higher salinity of the Qarhan paleolake occurred during two intervals, around 46–34 ka and 26–9 ka, which are almost coincident with the upper and lower halite-dominated salt layers in core ISL1A, drier climate phases documented from the δ18O record of carbonate in core ISL1A and the paleomoisture record in monsoonal central Asia, and a higher solar insolation at 30°N. These results demonstrate that the δ11B values of halite in the arid Qaidam Basin could be regarded as a new proxy for reconstructing the salinity record of paleolake water as well as paleoclimate conditions. [Display omitted] •δ11B values of 40 halite in ISL1A and 19 brines in Qarhan playa were analyzed.•High (low) B concentrations correspond to high (low) δ11B values of halite in ISL1A.•The δ11B values of halite coincide with δ18O values of carbonates in ISL1A.•The δ11B values of halite in ISL1A indicate the salinity of Qarhan paleolake water.•The sedimentary environment can be divided into three stages.