A tentative discussion on the age and provenance of the Xiashu Loess in the Hefei Basin, Anhui Province

Abstract: The OSL dating results show that the deposition of the Xiashu Loess (Xiashu Formation) in the Hefei Basin began in the late period of the Middle Pleistocene. In this study, the major geochemical elements and grain sizes of the Xiashu Loess in Hefei were compared with those of Northwest (NW) loess, Xiashu Loess of Zhenjiang, Wushan Loess and Xuancheng Loess. The provenance of the Xiashu Loess in Hefei was discussed. Studies of geochemical characteristics, grain size content and deposition rate show that the provenance of the Hefei Xiashu Loess differs from that of the nearby Zhenjiang loess and the Northwest China Loess which were derived from the northern deserts. The lithofacies palaeogeography and the paleoclimate indicate that the abundant fine-grained sediments of the alluvial-lacustrine deposits in the Huaihe floodplain seem to be the major source materials of the Hefei Xiashu Loess.