Asynchronous evolution of the isotopic composition and amount of precipitation in north China during the Holocene revealed by a record of compound-specific carbon and hydrogen isotopes of long-chain n-alkanes from an alpine lake

Both the timing of the maximum East Asian summer monsoon (EASM) intensity in monsoonal China and the environmental significance of the Chinese stalagmite oxygen isotopic record (delta O-18) have been debated. Here, we present a ca. 120-year-resolution compound-specific carbon (delta C-13) and hydrogen (SD) isotopes of terrestrial long-chain n-alkanes extracted from a well-dated sediment core from an alpine lake in north China. Our delta C-13 data, together with previously reported pollen data from a parallel core, demonstrate a humid mid-Holocene from ca. 8-5 ka BP. Assuming that the climatic humidity of north China is an indicator of the EASM intensity, then the maximum EASM intensity occurred in the mid Holocene. Our SD data reveal a similar long-term trend to the delta O-18 record from nearby Lianhua Cave, indicating that the synchronous SD and delta O-18 records faithfully record the SD and delta O-18 of precipitation, respectively. The most negative SD and delta O-18 values occur in t he early-mid Holocene, from ca. 11-5 ka BP. This contrast in the timing of isotopic variations demonstrates a complex relationship between the isotopic composition of precipitation and precipitation amount, or EASM intensity. Further comparisons indicate a possible linkage between the precipitation amount in north China and the west-east thermal gradient in the equatorial Pacific. In addition, the temperature of the moisture source area may play an important role in determining the isotopic composition of precipitation in monsoonal China. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.