ZHANG Wei, YU Yang, LIU Bei-bei , GAO Zhi-yuan, LI Da-peng

(School of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Liaoning Normal University, Liaoning, Dalian 116029, China)

Abstract: According to the optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating method as well as the correlation with the OSL and TL dating results from the hill and plain regions in eastern China, the authors studied the typical Qidingshan loess profile. The results indicated that the time of loess accumulation at Qidingshan was from the early Middle Pleistocene, while the Malan loess accumulated since 100-110 ka. During the last glacial cycle, the Malan loess was mainly deposited in the early and late stages of the last glacial cycle and the relative absolute OSL ages were 22-31 ka and 86-113 ka, respectively. There is about 40-50 ka loess layer absence in the Qidingshan profile possibly due to higher temperature, plentiful precipitation and landforms. However, this phenomenon did not appear in other sites in the southern part of Liaoning Province. The relatively continual loess deposits show that the loess accumulation was affected not only by climate but also by geomorphology, even in the same district. Moreover, the OSL dates reflect unusual loess accumulation in the southern part of Liaoning Province. The reason may be that the quartz grains were influenced by the source of dust and transport distance.

Key words: Qidingshan; loess profile; optically stimulated luminescence