Rates of accumulation of manganese nodules and associated sediment from the equatorial Pacific

Abstract

The accumulation rates and trace element contents of manganese nodules and coexisting sediment in a core collected from the central equatorial Pacific indicate that the nodules are chemically very similar and accumulated at similar rates, but that each stopped growing when it was buried. Elements largely confined to authigenic phases accumulate at comparable rates in nodules and sediment, whereas elements associated with detrital phases accumulate much more rapidly in the sediment.