Pore water chemistry of an alkaline rift valley lake: Lake Turkana, Kenya

Conference · Tue Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1985 · Geol. Soc. Am., Abstr. Programs; (United States)

OSTI ID:6874662

Cerling, T E; Johnson, T C; Halfman, J D; Lister, G

Lake Turkana is the largest closed basin lake in the African rift system. It has evolved through the past 5000 years to become a moderately alkaline lake. Previous mass balance argument suggest that sulfate is removed from the lake by sulfate reduction in the sediments, and that the lake is accumulating in chloride, sodium, and alkalinity. Studies of pore water from 12 meter cores collected in November 1984 show that sulfate is reduced in the sediment column with a net production of alkalinity. Some sodium is lost from the lake and diffuses into the sediment to maintain charge balance. At several meters depth, organic matter is destroyed by methanogenic bacteria, as shown by the high delta /sup 13/C values for dissolved inorganic carbon. Magnesium and calcium molar ratios change with depth; chloride, sodium, and alkalinity also change with depth.

• Research Organization: Univ. of Utah, Salt Lake City (USA)
• OSTI ID: 6874662
• Report Number(s): CONF-8510489-
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Geol. Soc. Am., Abstr. Programs; (United States) Journal Volume: 17
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

58 GEOSCIENCES
580400* -- Geochemistry-- (-1989)
ACID NEUTRALIZING CAPACITY
AFRICA
CARBON ISOTOPES
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
CHEMISTRY
CRYSTAL STRUCTURE
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
GEOCHEMISTRY
GEOLOGIC STRUCTURES
GROUND WATER
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INTERSTITIAL WATER
ISOTOPE RATIO
ISOTOPES
KENYA
MICROSTRUCTURE
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POROSITY
REDUCTION
REMOVAL
RIFT ZONES
ROCKS
SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
SEDIMENTS
SULFATES
SULFUR COMPOUNDS
WATER
WATER CHEMISTRY