Geochemical processes controlling the elevated fluoride concentrations in groundwaters of the Taiyuan Basin, Northern China

High fluoride groundwater with F− concentration up to 6.20 mg/L occurs in Taiyuan basin, northern China. The high fluoride groundwater zones are mainly located in the discharge areas, especially in places where shallow groundwater occurs (the groundwater depth is less than 4 m). Regional hydrogeochemical investigation indicates that processes including hydrolysis of silicate minerals, cation exchange, and evaporation should be responsible for the increase in average contents of major ions in groundwater from the recharge areas to the discharge areas. The concentration of F− in groundwater is positively correlated with that of HCO3− and Na+, indicating that groundwater with high HCO3− and Na+ contents help dissolve some fluoride-rich minerals. The water samples with high F− concentration generally have relatively higher pH value, implying that alkaline environment favors the replacement of exchangeable F− in fluoride-rich minerals by OH− in groundwater. In addition, the mixing of karst water along the western mountain front and the evaporation may also be important factors for the occurrence of high fluoride groundwater. The inverse geochemical modeling using PHREEQC supports the results of hydrogeochemical analyses. The modeling results show that in the recharge and flow-through area of the northern Taiyuan basin, interactions between groundwater and fluoride-rich minerals are the major factor for the increase of F− concentration, whereas in the discharge area of the northern basin, the evaporation as well as the mixing of karst water has greater contribution to the fluoride enrichment in groundwater.