(Table 1, page 1124), Chemical composition of Lake Michigan manganese nodules

Manganese nodules containing up to 22 percent manganese oxide were found in Green Bay and the western and northern parts of Lake Michigan. The chemical composition of these nodules resembles that of shallow-water lacustrine and marine nodules. The manganese content of interstitial water is in some places enriched as much as 4000 times over that of lake water.

Geochemistry on ferromanganese crusts and nodules from Green Bay, Lake Michigan

The differential solubility of ferromanganese oxides can lead to stratigraphic separation of iron and manganese. Results of chemical analysis of a sequence of ferromanganese nodules overlying iron-rich crusts in northern Green Bay show that selec¬tive ion transport is important in concentrating manganese and associated trace elements near the oxygenated water-sediment interface. Manganese carbonate, which cements ferromanganese nodules, occurs in dark-gray silty sands that are located adjacent to the organic-rich muds of southern Green Bay. These muds contain an average of approximately 3.5 ppm (6x10-5M) interstitial Mn with 2.8 meq/l carbonate alkalinity. Thermodynamic calculation shows that interstitial water approaches equilibrium with MnCO3 in the upper 10 cm of sediment. This carbonate has a composition (Mn73Ca22Fe5)CO3 and has been identified as rhodochrosite.

Minor element geochemistry of Lake Michigan ferromanganese nodules

Samples of ferromanganese nodules from several localities in Lake Michigan have been analyzed for their minor element content utilizing neutron activation techniques. The thorium and uranium levels in Lake Michigan nodules exhibit marked dissimilarities with marine nodules. The radium content of these freshwater nodules is substantially higher than the reported marine values. The concentrations of barium in the Lake Michigan nodules appear to be abnormally high. Although barium could be present as minute segregations of the mineral barite, patterns obtained using the electron microprobe suggest it is evently dispersed throughout the nodules. The average arsenic content of these freshwater nodules is at least twice as great as that reported for highly oxidized marine sediments. If all this arsenic is dissolved and released into Green Bay as a result of changing environmental conditions (eutrophication), the concentration in the water of Green Bay would be several times the maximum permissible level for drinking water.