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Dive into our publications and explore the science from the Environmental Health Program (Toxic Substances Hydrology and Contaminant Biology).

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Microbial reduction of iodate

The different oxidation species of iodine have markedly different sorption properties. Hence, changes in iodine redox states can greatly affect the mobility of iodine in the environment. Although a major microbial role has been suggested in the past to account for these redox changes, little has been done to elucidate the responsible microorganisms or the mechanisms involved. In the work presented
Authors
T.B. Councell, E. R. Landa, D. R. Lovley

Constant-concentration boundary condition: Lessons from the HYDROCOIN variable-density groundwater benchmark problem

In a solute-transport model, if a constant-concentration boundary condition is applied at a node in an active flow field, a solute flux can occur by both advective and dispersive processes. The potential for advective release is demonstrated by reexamining the Hydrologic Code Intercomparison (HYDROCOIN) project case 5 problem, which represents a salt dome overlain by a shallow groundwater system.
Authors
Leonard F. Konikow, W. E. Sanford, P.J. Campbell

Organic carbon and nitrogen content associated with colloids and suspended particulates from the Mississippi River and some of its tributaries

Suspended material samples were collected at 16 sites along the Mississippi River and some of its tributaries during July-August 1991, October-November 1991, and April-May 1992, and separated into colloid and particulate fractions to determine the organic carbon content of these two fractions of suspended material. Sample collection involved centrifugation to isolate the suspended particulate frac
Authors
C.E. Rostad, J. A. Leenheer, S.R. Daniel

Method for determination of methyl tert-butyl ether and its degradation products in water

An analytical method is described that can detect the major alkyl ether compounds that are used as gasoline oxygenates (methyl tert-butyl ether, MTBE; ethyl tert-butyl ether, ETBE; and tert-amyl methyl ether, TAME) and their most characteristic degradation products (tert-butyl alcohol, TBA; tert-butyl formate, TBF; and tert-amyl alcohol, TAA) in water at sub-ppb concentrations. The new method invo
Authors
C.D. Church, L.M. Isabelle, J. F. Pankow, D.L. Rose, P.G. Tratnyek

Effects of exchanged cation on the microporosity of montmorillonite

The micropore volumes of 2 montmorillonites (SAz-1 and SWy-1), each exchanged with Ca, Na, K, Cs and tetramethylammonium (TMA) ions, were calculated from the measured vapor adsorption data of N2 and neo-hexane by use of t- and αs-plots. The corresponding surface areas of the exchanged clays were determined from Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) plots of N2 adsorption data. Micropore volumes and surface
Authors
David W. Rutherford, Cary T. Chiou, Dennis D. Eberl

Resolution of matrix effects on analysis of total and methyl mercury in aqueous samples from the Florida Everglades

 Aqueous samples from the Florida Everglades present several problems for the analysis of total mercury (HgT) and methyl mercury (MeHg). Constituents such as dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and sulfide at selected sites present particular challenges due to interferences with standard analytical techniques. This is manifested by 1) the inability to discern when bromine monochloride (BrCl) addition i
Authors
M.L. Olson, L.B. Cleckner, J.P. Hurley, D. P. Krabbenhoft, T.W. Heelan

Iron deposition as acidic groundwater encounters carbonates in the alluvium of Pinal Creek, Arizona, U.S.A.

In a column experiment, acidic groundwater from Pinal Creek Arizona, a Cu mining area, was eluted through a composited alluvial sample obtained from a core that had been removed from a well downgradient of the acidic groundwater. The minerals present in typical grains and flakes in the alluvium before and after the elution were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy, a
Authors
Carol J. Lind, R.L. Oscarson

Chemical characteristics of particulate, colloidal, and dissolved organic material in Loch Vale Watershed, Rocky Mountain National Park

The chemical relationships among particulate and colloidal organic material and dissolved fulvic acid were examined in an alpine and subalpine lake and two streams in Loch Vale Watershed, Rocky Mountain National Park. The alpine lake, Sky Pond, had the lowest dissolved organic carbon (DOC) (0.37 mgC/L), the highest particulate carbon (POC) (0.13 mgC/L), and high algal biomass. The watershed of Sky
Authors
Diane M. McKnight, R. Harnish, R. L. Wershaw, Jill Baron, S. Schiff

Physiological considerations in applying laboratory-determined buoyant densities to predictions of bacterial and protozoan transport in groundwater: Results of in-situ and laboratory tests

Buoyant densities were determined for groundwater bacteria and microflagellates (protozoa) from a sandy aquifer (Cape Cod, MA) using two methods:  (1) density-gradient centrifugation (DGC) and (2) Stoke's law approximations using sedimentation rates observed during natural-gradient injection and recovery tests. The dwarf (average cell size, 0.3 μm), unattached bacteria inhabiting a pristine zone j
Authors
R.W. Harvey, D.W. Metge, N. Kinner, N. Mayberry

Terbuthylazine and deethylterbuthylazine in rain and surface water: Determination by enzyme immunoassay and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry

Rain and surface water samples from Southern Germany were investigated from 1991 to 1995 for terbuthylazine and one of its major metabolites, deethylterbuthylazine. The concentrations observed were compared to the concentrations found for atrazine and deethylatrazine in the same water samples. Concentrations ranged from < 0.02 μg/L to 0.7 μg/L for terbuthylazine and from < 0.02 μg/L to 0.6 μg/L fo
Authors
A. Dankwardt, E. M. Thurman, B. Hock

Assessing hydrogeochemical heterogeneity in natural and constructed wetlands

While 'water quality function' is cited as an important wetland function to design for and preserve, we demonstrate that the scale at which hydrochemical samples are collected can significantly influence interpretations of biogeochemical processes in wetlands. Subsurface, chemical profiles for both nutrients and major ions were determined at a site in southwestern Wisconsin that contained areas of
Authors
R. J. Hunt, D. P. Krabbenhoft, M.P. Anderson

Differential cytochrome content and reductase activity in Geospirillum barnesii strain SeS3

The protein composition, cytochrome content, and reductase activity in the dissimilatory selenate-reducing bacterium Geospirillum barnesii strain SeS3, grown with thiosulfate, nitrate, selenate, or fumarate as the terminal electron acceptor, was investigated. Comparison of seven high-molecular-mass membrane proteins (105.3, 90.3, 82.6, 70.2, 67.4, 61.1, and 57.3 kDa) by SDS-PAGE showed that their
Authors
J.F. Stolz, T. Gugliuzza, Blum J. Switzer, R. Oremland, Murillo F. Martinez