Dataset on the abundance, enrichment and partitioning of chemical elements between the particulate and sedimentary phases in the Cai River estuary (South China Sea)

The present work contributes to the local geochemical baselines as a background for long-term monitoring of potential hazardous elements. The dataset covers the source/raw, analysed, calculated data, and descriptive statistics on the bulk, normalized-to-Al, and normalized-to-Fe contents of 53 chemical elements along with environmental indices (EF-Al, EF-Fe, and Igeo) and partition coefficient (K-SPM/Sed, calculated of both bulk and normalized-to-Al element contents) in the surface SPM and surface bottom sediments of the Cai River estuary and includes the respective reference material values. The data provided is essential for the comprehensive environmental assessment of the anthropogenic impact on the coastal ecosystem as well as for the evaluation and modelling of element fractionation and mobility at the estuarine gradients.