The thick late Cenozoic sediments and the abundant mineral resources in the Qaidam Basin provide an ideal place for the research of the palaeo-climate, the tectonic movement, the basin evolution, and the salt mineralization theory. This paper reviews the saltforming dating results recorded in the drilling cores and sections in the Qaidam Basin, and compares them with the tectonic movement periods and the Quaternary glaciations on the Tibetan Plateau. The comparison results indicate that there are certain correlations between the salt forming periods and the tectonic movement periods and the Quaternary glaciations. In the salt lakes and playas one usually observes preserved salt deposits formed in the Penultimate Glaciation and the Last Glaciation, and in some places there are salt deposits formed in the Xixiabangma Glaciation, the Wangkun Glaciation and the Zhonglianggan Glaciation; in the Qarhan Salt Lake in the eastern Qaidam Basin there are only salt deposits formed since the Last Glaciation. The dry and cold climate and the expansion of glacier during the glacial environment reduce the water supply in the salt lakes, which is favourable for the salt deposits.

Qaidam Basin  /  salt deposit  /  tectonic movement of Tibetan Platealu  /  Quaternary glaciations