Dissolved organic matter of a low‐coloured stream

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Abstract
SUMMARY. The dissolved organic matter (DOM) of White Clay Creek (Pennsylvania, U.S.A.), a low‐coloured stream, was characterized by gel permeation chromatography, humic acid determination, compound classification analysis and gas chromatography.Large polymers (approximate mol.wt above 5000) were virtually absent. The majority of the DOM consisted of fulvic acid‐like material, of probable mol.wt less than 3000. Highly coloured material represented only a small portion of the total. Substances classifiable as phenols, carbohydrates, lipids, amino acids or proteins made up only a small fraction of the DOM. Sixteen low mol. wt compounds (carboxylic acids, amino acids, carbohydrates and an amide) were tentatively identified.DOM concentration had a mean value of 6.4 mgC/l and showed annual fluctuations, with maxima in autumn and in late winter.