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Publications

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

Filter Total Items: 3746

Surface complexation and precipitate geometry for aqueous Zn(II) sorption on ferrihydrite I: X-ray absorption extended fine structure spectroscopy analysis

“Two-line” ferrihydrite samples precipitated and then exposed to a range of aqueous Zn solutions (10−5 to 10−3 M), and also coprecipitated in similar Zn solutions (pH 6.5), have been examined by Zn and Fe K-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy. Typical Zn complexes on the surface have Zn-O distances of 1.97(.02) Å and coordination numbers of about 4.0(0.5), consistent with tetrahedral oxygen coordin
Authors
G.A. Waychunas, C. C. Fuller, J.A. Davis

Microbial mineralization of ethene under sulfate-reducing conditions

Previous investigations demonstrated that respiratoly reductive dechlorination of vinyl chloride (VC) can be efficient even at H2 concentrations (≤2 nM) that are characteristic of SO4-reducing conditions. In the study reported here, microorganisms indigenous to a lake-bed sediment completely mineralized [1,2-14C] ethene to 1414CO2 when incubated under SO4-reducing conditions. Together, these obser
Authors
P. M. Bradley, F. H. Chapelle

Evaluating remedial alternatives for an acid mine drainage stream: Application of a reactive transport model

A reactive transport model based on one-dimensional transport and equilibrium chemistry is applied to synoptic data from an acid mine drainage stream. Model inputs include streamflow estimates based on tracer dilution, inflow chemistry based on synoptic sampling, and equilibrium constants describing acid/base, complexation, precipitation/dissolution, and sorption reactions. The dominant features o
Authors
R.L. Runkel, B. A. Kimball

Removal of antibiotics from surface and distilled water in conventional water treatment processes

Conventional drinking water treatment processes were evaluated under typical water treatment plant conditions to determine their effectiveness in the removal of seven common antibiotics: carbadox, sulfachlorpyridazine, sulfadimethoxine, sulfamerazine, sulfamethazine, sulfathiazole, and trimethoprim. Experiments were conducted using synthetic solutions prepared by spiking both distilled/ deionized
Authors
C. Adams, Y. Wang, K. Loftin, M. Meyer

Increased selenium threat as a result of invasion of the exotic bivalve Potamocorbula amurensis into the San Francisco Bay-Delta

Following the aggressive invasion of the bivalve, Potamocorbula amurensis, in the San Francisco Bay-Delta in 1986, selenium contamination in the benthic food web increased. Concentrations in this dominant (exotic) bivalve in North Bay were three times higher in 1995–1997 than in earlier studies, and 1990 concentrations in benthic predators (sturgeon and diving ducks) were also higher than in 1986.
Authors
R.G. Linville, S. N. Luoma, L. Cutter, G.A. Cutter

Effect of growth conditions and staining procedure upon the subsurface transport and attachment behaviors of a groundwater protist

The transport and attachment behaviors of Spumella guttula (Kent), a nanoflagellate (protist) found in contaminated and uncontaminated aquifer sediments in Cape Cod, Mass., were assessed in flowthrough and static columns and in a field injection-and-recovery transport experiment involving an array of multilevel samplers. Transport of S. guttula harvested from low-nutrient (10 mg of dissolved organ
Authors
R.W. Harvey, N. Mayberry, N.E. Kinner, D.W. Metge, F. Novarino

Annual primary production: Patterns and mechanisms of change in a nutrient-rich tidal ecosystem

Although nutrient supply often underlies long-term changes in aquatic primary production, other regulatory processes can be important. The Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, a complex of tidal waterways forming the landward portion of the San Francisco Estuary, has ample nutrient supplies, enabling us to examine alternate regulatory mechanisms over a 21-yr period. Delta-wide primary productivity
Authors
Alan D. Jassby, James E. Cloern, B.E. Cole

Potential effects of global warming on the Sacramento/San Joaquin watershed and the San Francisco estuary

California's primary hydrologic system, the San Francisco estuary and its upstream watershed, is vulnerable to the regional hydrologic consequences of projected global climate change. Projected temperature anomalies from a global climate model are used to drive a combined model of watershed hydrology and estuarine dynamics. By 2090, a projected temperature increase of 2.1°C results in a loss of ab
Authors
Noah Knowles, Daniel R. Cayan

Mercury loading and methylmercury production and cycling in high-altitude lakes from the Western United States

Studies worldwide have shown that mercury (Hg) is a ubiquitous contaminant, reaching even the most remote environments such as high-altitude lakes via atmospheric pathways. However, very few studies have been conducted to assess Hg contamination levels of these systems. We sampled 90 mid-latitude, high-altitude lakes from seven national parks in the western United States during a four-week period
Authors
David P. Krabbenhoft, Mark L. Olson, John F. DeWild, David W. Clow, Robert G. Striegl, Mark M. Dornblaser, Peter C. Van Metre