The Application of Numerical Characteristics to the Distribution Characteristics of Copper in the Liao River, China

The aim of the present investigation was to research the distribution characteristics of copper in water and sediment of the Liao River, China. The concentrations of copper in water and sediment showed significant difference at different sampling stations. The distribution characteristics of copper in water and sediment were obtained by using discrete and continuous numerical characteristics. The results indicated that the average concentrations of copper in water and sediment decreased slightly after its accumulation. While the deviations of the concentrations of copper in water and sediment from the expectation increased significantly after its accumulation. The skewness distributions of the concentrations of copper in water and sediment did not change much before and after its accumulation. The kurtosis distributions of the concentrations of copper in water and sediment decreased significantly after its accumulation. Therefore, the precise distribution characteristics of copper in water and sediment were obtained through the combination of the discrete and continuous numerical characteristics.