Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering Commons^™

Phosphorus Flux From Bottom Sediments In New Spiro Lake, Oklahoma, Katherine Smith

Biological and Agricultural Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Phosphorus loads to water bodies consist of external flux from the watershed and internal flux from the bottom sediments. In this study, the specific objectives were to measure the internal phosphorus flux from bottom sediments under aerobic and anaerobic conditions and determine the effectiveness of various rates of alum treatment on sediment phosphorus release. Eight intact sediment cores from New Spiro Lake were incubated under aerobic and anaerobic conditions for 41 days at room temperature. The cores were treated in the middle of incubation with alum (aluminum sulfate) and sodium aluminate at a ratio of 2:1, ranging from 0.05 to …