| dc.description.abstract | This study dealt with the investigation of minerals in the water and surrounding rocks of Rurii spring
which is located in Meru County, Kenya. The spring is well known for discharging highly
carbonated and salty water for many years, but no research has been done previously with regard to
this phenomenon. The sampling was done twice during the dry and rainy seasons, in the months of
September and November 2012, respectively. Ten samples or replicates of the mineral water, rocks
and sediments were collected and analysed in each case. The mineral content and other quality
parameters of the water were determined. Rock and sediment samples around the spring were
analysed for the major oxides (SiO2, Na2O, K2O, CaO, MgO, Al2O3, Fe2O3, MnO and TiO2). The
analytical methods used were AAS, XRF, UV/VIS and Titrimetry. The mineral water was found to
be very rich in free CO2 and HCO3
-, with almost two to three litres of carbon dioxide per litre of
mineral water at room temperature. The CO2 most likely originates from the earth’s crust and rises
through a volcanic vent to the surface where it gets mixed with the water to form H2CO3. Sodium
level was 1043±35.0 mg/l and 954.4±20.3 mg/l, while chloride was 950.9±13.1 mg/l and 853.6±10.0
mg/l, during the dry and rainy periods, respectively. This was extremely high and contributed to the
salty taste in the water. In general, the water had a very high level of mineral content which was
responsible for the large TDS (5056.7±51.2 mg/l and 4923.1±40.7 mg/l) as well as very high
electrical conductivity (6014.0±41.0 mg/l and 5986.0±40.0 mg/l), in dry and rainy seasons,
respectively. The overall mineral analysis of the water, rocks and sediments revealed abundance of
dolomite, CaMg(CO3)2 and feldspar, (K,Na,Ca)Al2Si2O8, containing rocks in the studied area. There
was no remarkable difference between the results obtained for the dry and rainy seasons. | en_US |
