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eISSN: 2083-5906
ISSN: 1230-1485
ISSN: 1230-1485
ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Comparison of Hydrochemical Characteristics
of Groundwater in the Qihe River Alluvial
Fan of North China over the Past 35 Years
1
Hebei Province Collaborative Innovation Center for Sustainable Utilization of Water Resources and Optimization
of Industrial Structure, Hebei GEO University, Shijiazhuang 050031, China
2
Center for Hydrogeology and Environmental Geology Survey, China Geological Survey, Tianjin 300309, China
3
State Key Laboratory of Biogeography and Environmental Geology, Wuhan 430078, China
4
The Prevent and Control Center for the Geological Disaster of Henan Geological Bureau, Zhengzhou 450000, China
Submission date: 2026-03-25
Final revision date: 2026-06-12
Acceptance date: 2026-08-12
Online publication date: 2026-11-03
Corresponding author
Huaisheng Zhang
School of Water Resources and Environment, Hebei Province Collaborative Innovation Center for Sustainable Utilization of Water Resources and Optimization of Industrial Structure, Hebei GEO University, No. 136 Huai’an East Road, Yuhua District, 050031, Shijiazhuang, China
School of Water Resources and Environment, Hebei Province Collaborative Innovation Center for Sustainable Utilization of Water Resources and Optimization of Industrial Structure, Hebei GEO University, No. 136 Huai’an East Road, Yuhua District, 050031, Shijiazhuang, China
Yonggao Lyu
Center for Hydrogeology and Environmental Geology Survey, China Geological Survey, Tianjin 300309, China
Center for Hydrogeology and Environmental Geology Survey, China Geological Survey, Tianjin 300309, China
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
Groundwater resources play a crucial role in socioeconomic development and domestic water
use in piedmont alluvial plain areas. In this study, the Qihe River alluvial fan (QRAF) was selected
as a representative area to investigate the evolutionary patterns of shallow groundwater chemistry
in the North China Plain (NCP). Based on shallow groundwater monitoring data collected during the
wet seasons of 1983 and 2017, the spatiotemporal trends in chemical characteristics and their influencing
factors in shallow groundwater in the QRAF were studied using multi-hydrochemical and statistical
methods. The results showed that the groundwater in the QRAF was generally weakly alkaline,
and groundwater quality has generally deteriorated over time. In particular, the concentrations of Cl‒
and NO3‒, two important indicators of water quality and pollution, increased significantly in 2017
compared with 1983. Although the groundwater chemical types were still dominated by HCO3-Ca
and HCO3-Ca·Mg types, significant changes occurred along the middle to outer edge of the fan between
1983 and 2017, especially in the low-lying areas along the Weihe River. In 1983, the groundwater
chemical composition was primarily controlled by natural processes such as water-rock interaction,
whereas in 2017 it was additionally affected by anthropogenic activities, resulting in a more complex
hydrochemical driving mechanism. The research findings can provide a reference for groundwater
safety and protection management in the QRAF and other similar areas in the world.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
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| eISSN: | 2083-5906 |
| ISSN: | 1230-1485 |
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