Soil geochemical zoning based on factor analysis in Pingguo City , Guangxi

Extracting useful geochemical information from land quality geochemical survey data, which often consists of numerous testing indicators and abundant information, is a challenging task. Factor analysis, as a multivariate statistical analysis method, is commonly used in the analysis of geochemical data to condense complex geochemical indicators into a few key factors that reflect most of the information in the original data. By applying factor analysis to the surface soil data from a 1: 250, 000 land quality geochemical survey in Pingguo City, Guangxi, seven factors representing the main geochemical information of the study area were identified. These factors were used to establish seven geochemical zones based on combinations of indicators, and a geochemical zoning map was created. By considering the characteristics of each geochemical zone, along with the regional geological background and the geochemical properties of the element combinations, the geological and geochemical significance of each geochemical zone was explored.