USING SELF POTENTIAL TO MAP THE CHEMOCLINE AT GREEN LAKE, NY

Located near Fayetteville, New York, a glacial lake named Green Lake possesses a chemocline separating oxic waters from sulfidic waters. Previously, Oxidation-Reduction potential (ORP) probes have been used to track redox changes in the lake and map out the dynamics of the chemocline. We proposed a new methodology, one that uses self potential (SP), to see how this compared to ORP probe data. Using 2 electrodes at a time, connected to a voltmeter, we took numerous measurements through the chemocline in the center of the lake. We also measured ORP to compare the two. SP correlated very well with the ORP probe data and even left us with a few more research questions. Shifts within the SP data over time, may be due to electrodic reactions taking place in the water column. Using SP for limnological redox changes not only shows a good correlation with ORP probe data, but it is also much cheaper and can provide electrodic reaction information.