Liu, Jianguo; Steinke, Stephan; Vogt, Christoph; Mohtadi, Mahyar; De Pol-Holz, Ricardo; Hebbeln, Dierk (2016): Radiocarbon ages, clay mineral assemblage data, X-ray fluorescence (XRF) core scanning data of sediment cores GeoB16601-6 and GeoB16602-4 [dataset publication series]. PANGAEA, https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.868359,

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Supplement to: Liu, J et al. (2017): Temporal and spatial patterns of sediment deposition in the northern South China Sea over the last 50,000 years. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 465, 212-224, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2016.10.033

Sediment depositional patterns along the upper continental slope of the northern South China Sea (SCS) have been studied using two sediment cores (GeoB16601-6, 20°09.07'N, 116°14.38'E, 1012 m water depth and GeoB16602-4, 18°57.12'N, 113°42.64'E, 951 m water depth) recovered during RV SONNE Cruise SO-221'INVERS'. Sediment cores were analyzed for bulk sediment element composition by X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) core scanning and clay mineral assemblage by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD). The bulk sediment element and the clay mineral compositions of the two cores suggest similar depositional patterns between 50 kyr BP and ~29 kyr BP, and ~14 kyr BP to present, but a clear difference in depositional patterns during the last glacial and deglacial (~29-14 kyr BP) when sea level was below-90 m. Between ~29-14 kyr BP, a higher kaolinite percentage in core GeoB16602-4 in comparison to core GeoB16601-6 is interpreted to reflect a higher contribution of clay supplied by the Pearl River to core site GeoB16602-4. In contrast, core GeoB16601-6 received less Pearl River supplied clayeymaterial during the same period.When the sea levelwas below-90mduring the last glacial lowstand, the detrital fine-grained materials supplied by the Pearl River were mostly transported by coastal currents to the southwest, resulting in a higher contribution of Pearl River discharged material at site GeoB16602-4 than at site GeoB16601-6. We suggest that sea-level induced modifications of the land-ocean distribution together with changes in the palaeo-physiographic conditions, such as the proximity of the palaeo-rivers to the individual core sites might be responsible for the different sediment depositional patterns in the study area. Thus, the overriding control of sea-level induced changes on the sediment depositional environment might mask climate-related changes in sediment depositional pattern in the northern SCS.