# Dissolved load > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Dissolved_load > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Dissolved_load.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dissolved_load > Source revision: 1321248671 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{Short description|Sediment dissolved in water}} [[File:Stream Load.gif|thumb|upright=1.35|Dissolved load is one of three types of stream load, along with [suspended load](/source/suspended_load) and [bed load](/source/bed_load).]] '''Dissolved load''' is the portion of a [stream](/source/River)'s total sediment load that is carried in [solution](/source/Solution_(chemistry)), especially [ion](/source/ion)s from [chemical weathering](/source/Weathering). It is a major contributor to the total amount of material removed from a river's [drainage basin](/source/drainage_basin), along with [suspended load](/source/suspended_load) and [bed load](/source/bed_load). The amount of material carried as dissolved load is typically much smaller than the [suspended load](/source/suspended_load),{{Cite journal|last1=Alexandrov|first1=Yulia|last2=Cohen|first2=Hai|last3=Laronne|first3=Jonathan B.|last4=Reid|first4=Ian|date=2009|title=Suspended sediment load, bed load, and dissolved load yields from a semiarid drainage basin: A 15-year study|journal=Water Resources Research|language=en|volume=45|issue=8|pages=W08408|doi=10.1029/2008wr007314|bibcode=2009WRR....45.8408A|s2cid=129669714 |issn=0043-1397}} though this is not always the case, particularly when the available river flow is mostly harnessed for purposes such as [irrigation](/source/irrigation) or industrial uses. Dissolved load comprises a significant portion of the total material flux out of a landscape, and its composition is important in regulating the chemistry and biology of the stream water. The dissolved load is primarily controlled by the rate of [chemical weathering](/source/Weathering), which depends on [climate](/source/climate) and [weather](/source/weather) conditions such as [moisture](/source/moisture) and [temperature](/source/temperature).{{Cite journal|last1=Grosbois|first1=C.|last2=Négrel|first2=Ph.|last3=Fouillac|first3=C.|last4=Grimaud|first4=D.|date=2000|title=Dissolved load of the Loire River: chemical and isotopic characterization|journal=Chemical Geology|volume=170|issue=1–4|pages=179–201|doi=10.1016/s0009-2541(99)00247-8|bibcode=2000ChGeo.170..179G|issn=0009-2541}} Dissolved load has many useful applications within the field of [geology](/source/geology), including [erosion](/source/erosion), [denudation](/source/denudation), and reconstructing climate in the past. == Measurement techniques == Dissolved load is typically measured by taking samples of water from a river and running various scientific tests on them. First, the [pH](/source/pH), [conductivity](/source/Conductivity_(electrolytic)), and [bicarbonate](/source/bicarbonate) [alkalinity](/source/alkalinity) of the sample are measured. Next, samples are filtered to remove any suspended [sediment](/source/sediment)s and preserved with [chloroform](/source/chloroform) to prevent growth of [microorganism](/source/microorganism)s, while the others are acidified with [hydrochloric acid](/source/hydrochloric_acid) added to keep dissolved ions from [precipitating](/source/Precipitation_(chemistry)) out of solution. Then, various chemical tests are applied to determine the concentration of each [solute](/source/solute). For example, the concentrations of [sodium](/source/sodium) and [potassium](/source/potassium) ions can be determined by [flame photometry](/source/flame_photometer), while the [calcium](/source/calcium) and [magnesium](/source/magnesium) ion concentrations can be determined by [atomic absorption spectrophotometry](/source/Atomic_absorption_spectroscopy).{{Cite journal|last=Grove|first=T.|date=1972-08-01|title=The dissolved and solid load carried by some West African rivers: Senegal, Niger, Benue and Shari|journal=Journal of Hydrology|language=en|volume=16|issue=4|pages=277–300|doi=10.1016/0022-1694(72)90133-3|bibcode=1972JHyd...16..277G|issn=0022-1694}} == Applications == === Reconstructing climate === Dissolved load can provide valuable information about the rate of [soil formation](/source/soil_formation) and other processes of chemical [erosion](/source/erosion). In particular, the mass balance between the dissolved load and solid phase is helpful in determining surface dynamics. In addition, dissolved load can be used to reconstruct the [climate of the Earth in the past](/source/Paleoclimatology). This is because chemical weathering is the major contributor to the dissolved load of a stream. The chemical weathering of [silicate rocks](/source/Silicate_minerals) is the primary sink for [carbon dioxide](/source/carbon_dioxide) in the atmosphere, because atmospheric carbon dioxide is converted into [carbonate rock](/source/carbonate_rock)s in the [carbonate–silicate cycle](/source/carbonate%E2%80%93silicate_cycle). [Carbon dioxide concentrations](/source/Carbon_dioxide_in_Earth's_atmosphere) are the primary control of the [greenhouse effect](/source/greenhouse_effect), which determines the temperature of the Earth.{{Cite journal|last1=Chetelat|first1=B.|last2=Liu|first2=C.-Q.|last3=Zhao|first3=Z.Q.|last4=Wang|first4=Q.L.|last5=Li|first5=S.L.|last6=Li|first6=J.|last7=Wang|first7=B.L.|date=2008|title=Geochemistry of the dissolved load of the Changjiang Basin rivers: Anthropogenic impacts and chemical weathering|journal=Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta|volume=72|issue=17|pages=4254–4277|doi=10.1016/j.gca.2008.06.013|bibcode=2008GeCoA..72.4254C|issn=0016-7037}} === Denudation === [Denudation](/source/Denudation) is the process of wearing away the top layers of Earth's [landscape](/source/landscape). Because the denudation rate is normally too low to measure directly, it can be indirectly determined by measuring the [sediment load](/source/sediment_load) of the streams that drain the area in question. This is possible because any material that passes through a certain point on a stream is guaranteed to have come from somewhere in the stream's [drainage basin](/source/drainage_basin) upstream of that point. As [topographic relief](/source/Terrain) increases, the dissolved load's contribution to the total stream load decreases because on steeper surfaces, rain is less likely to [infiltrate](/source/Infiltration_(hydrology)) the rocks, leading to less chemical weathering, which decreases the dissolved load.{{Cite journal|last1=Judson|first1=Sheldon|last2=Ritter|first2=Dale F.|date=1964-08-15|title=Rates of regional denudation in the United States|journal=Journal of Geophysical Research|language=en|volume=69|issue=16|pages=3395–3401|doi=10.1029/jz069i016p03395|bibcode=1964JGR....69.3395J|issn=0148-0227}} ===Salt export=== The process of carrying [salts](/source/Salt_(chemistry)) by water to the sea or a [land-locked lake](/source/Endorheic_basin) from a river basin is called salt export. When adequate salt export is not occurring, the river basin area gradually converts into [saline soils](/source/Soil_salinity_control) and/or [alkali soil](/source/alkali_soil)s, particularly in lower reaches.{{cite web|url= http://www.iwmi.cgiar.org/Publications/IWMI_Research_Reports/PDF/pub056/Report56.pdf|title=Hydronomic Zones for Developing Basin Water Conservation Strategies|accessdate=12 July 2015}} == Dissolved loads of selected major rivers == {| class="wikitable sortable" |+Dissolved loads of selected major world rivers {{Cite journal|last1=Zhang|first1=Shu-Rong|last2=Lu|first2=Xi Xi|last3=Higgitt|first3=David Laurence|last4=Chen|first4=Chen-Tung Arthur|last5=Sun|first5=Hui-Guo|last6=Han|first6=Jing-Tai|date=2007-03-22|title=Water chemistry of the Zhujiang (Pearl River): Natural processes and anthropogenic influences|journal=Journal of Geophysical Research|language=en|volume=112|issue=F1|pages=F01011|doi=10.1029/2006jf000493|bibcode=2007JGRF..112.1011Z|issn=0148-0227|doi-access=free}}{{Cite web |url=http://ncscm.org/cms/about-us/publications/1986%20-%202.pdf |title=Mass transport in krishna river basin (Table-5) |access-date=25 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150619220839/http://ncscm.org/cms/about-us/publications/1986%20-%202.pdf |archive-date=19 June 2015 |url-status=dead }} !River !Drainage area, 106 km2 !Discharge, 109 m3/yr !Total dissolved solids (TDS), 106 tonnes/yr |- |[Xijiang](/source/Xi_River) | align="right" |0.35 | align="right" |30 | align="right" |10.14 |- |[Changjiang](/source/Yangtze) | align="right" |1.95 | align="right" |1063 | align="right" |226 |- |[Huanghe](/source/Yellow_River) | align="right" |0.745 | align="right" |48 | align="right" |84 |- |[Ganges-Brahmaputra](/source/Ganges-Brahmaputra_river_basin) | align="right" |1.48 | align="right" |1071 | align="right" |129.5 |- |[Lena](/source/Lena_River) | align="right" |2.44 | align="right" |532 | align="right" |50.6 |- |[Amazon](/source/Amazon_River) | align="right" |4.69 | align="right" |6930 | align="right" |324.6 |- |[Orinoco](/source/Orinoco) | align="right" |1.00 | align="right" |1100 | align="right" |51.3 |- |[Krishna](/source/Krishna_River) | align="right" |0.251 | align="right" |30 | align="right" |10.4 |- |[Godavari](/source/Godavari_River) | align="right" |0.31 | align="right" |92 | align="right" |17 |- |[Kaveri](/source/Kaveri_River) | align="right" |0.09 | align="right" |21 | align="right" |3.5 |- |[Ganges](/source/Ganges) | align="right" |0.75 | align="right" |493 | align="right" |84 |- |World total | align="right" |101 | align="right" |37000{{Cite web |url=https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/380721eng.pdf|title=Ground Water-Making the invisible visible (page 13), The United Nations World Water Development Report 2022 |access-date=5 April 2022}} | align="right" |3843.0 |- |} ==See also== {{Div col|colwidth=20em}} * [Bed load](/source/Bed_load) * [Rouse number](/source/Rouse_number) * [Sediment](/source/Sediment) * [Sediment transport](/source/Sediment_transport) * [Stream load](/source/Stream_load) * [Wash load](/source/Wash_load) * [List of drainage basins by area](/source/List_of_drainage_basins_by_area) * [List of rivers by discharge](/source/List_of_rivers_by_discharge) * [Freshwater salinization](/source/Freshwater_salinization) {{div col end}} ==References== {{reflist}} [https://walrus.wr.usgs.gov/infobank/programs/html/school/moviepage/18.01.13.html USGS CMG InfoBank: Suspended and Dissolved Loads] {{Rivers, streams and springs}} Category:Geochemistry Category:Hydrology Category:Weathering Category:Geomorphology --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Dissolved load](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dissolved_load) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dissolved_load?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.