DISTRIBUTION OF SOME CHEMICAL VALUES IN 

 LAKE ERIE 



Paul R, Burkliolder, Microplanktonologist 

 Cornell University 



nitrate nitrogen, dissolved oxygen, phenolphthalein 

 alkalinity, methyl-orange alkalinity, hydrogen -ion 

 concentration, chloride, and turbidity. 



METHODS 



CONTENTS 



Page 



Introduction 71 



Methods 71 



Presentation of the data 71 



Nitrogen compounds 71 



Dissolved oxygen 72 



Carbon dioxide 76 



Methyl -orange alkalinity 84 



Hydrogen -ion concentration 85 



Chloride 85 



Turbidity 91 



General discussion 91 



INTRODUCTION 



In the course of the general biological survey 

 of Lake Erie, an inquiry into certain chemical con- 

 ditions of the waters was made for the purpose of de- 

 termining the natural lake conditions and the extent 

 to which these may have been affected by domestic 

 sewage and industrial wastes from the various cities 

 and harbors along the shores. During the summer of 

 1928 analyses were made upon samples of water 

 taken from some 20 different stations occupied 

 monthly by the U. S. Fisheries Steamer Shea rwater 

 in that part of the lake east from a line connecting 

 Long Point and the Pennsylvania -New York state line. 

 In the second season, j.. e. 1929, operations were ex- 

 tended to cover practically the entire lake and an- 

 alyses were carried out monthly on samples collected 

 from about 60 stations in the open lake and from 

 many harbor waters. 



In 1928 the samples were collected and the field 

 analyses were made by the writer. The major part 

 of the laboratory work was, however, performed by 

 Roger Williams, Buffalo City Chemist, and his as- 

 sistant, Albert Reiser. In 1929 the collection and 

 analysis of the samples was executed by Casimir J. 

 Munter, Assistant in the Department of Chemistry, 

 Ohio State University. 



During the survey the following determinations 

 vsrere made: albuminoid ammonia, free ammonia. 



For the nitrogen analyses, a 1 -liter sample of 

 water was collected from the intermediate depth of 

 each station in July, and from both the surface and 

 bottom in August and September, 1928. Samples 

 were obtained by lowering a 1 -liter glass stoppered 

 bottle in a special frame to the desired depth. The 

 bottle was then filled by working a double tripping 

 device which opened and closed the sample in situ. 

 The samples were kept in these bottles on ice until 

 analyses could be made in the laboratory. 



Water samples for all other analyses in 1928 were 

 taken with a Greene -Bigelow water bottle. In 1929 

 the surface samples were obtained with the Kemmerer 

 sampler and the subsurface samples were collected 

 with the Greene -Bigelow bottle. The methods of 

 analysis were employed as recommended by the Amer- 

 ican Public Health Association's Standard Methods of 

 Water Analysis (1925). 



PRESENTATION OF THE DATA 



The vertical, horizontal, and seasonal distri- 

 bution of the chemical values obtained in the two 

 years will be presented in this paper with attention 

 focused primarily upon what are considered "hormal 

 conditions" of the open lake. Data obtained in 

 rivers and harbors are treated in the light of their con- 

 trast with the open lake conditions in the paper by 

 C. J. Munter entitled Chemical Observa tions on 

 Pollution. 



For purposes of the present discussion, the data 

 obtained in both years are utilized. The nitrogen de- 

 terminations of the first season and the oxygen, car- 

 bon dioxide, pH, total alkalinity, chloride, and tur- 

 bidity figures for the second year are selected for 

 treatment in detail. Results of all the analyses for 

 the second year may be found in the appended tables 

 13 and 14. 



Nitrogen Compounds 



Since nitrogen is a constituent in the proteins of 

 both plants and animals, it is one of the most impor- 

 tant elements in the aquatic environment. That the 

 utilization of available nitrogen in the growth 



71 



