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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: 3787

Dating of shallow groundwater: Comparison of the transient tracers 3H/3He, chlorofluorocarbons, and 85Kr

This paper describes a direct comparison of apparent ages derived from 3H/3He, chlorofluorocarbons (CCl3F and CCl2F2), and 85Kr measurements in shallow groundwater. Wells chosen for this study are completed in the unconfined surficial aquifers in late Cenozoic Atlantic Coastal Plain sediments of the Delmarva Peninsula, on the east coast of the United States. Most of the apparent tracer ages agree
Authors
Brenda Ekwurzel, Peter Schlosser, William M. Smethie, Niel Plummer, Eurybiades Busenberg, Robert L. Michel, Ralf Weppernig, Martin Stute

Chemistry of dissolved organic matter in rivers, lakes, and reservoirs

Recent investigations provide new insight on the structural chemistry of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in freshwater environments and the role of these structures in contaminant binding. Molecular models of DOM derived from allochthonous and autochthonous sources show that short-chain, branched, and alicyclic structures are terminated by carboxyl or methyl groups in DOM from both sources. Allocht
Authors
J. A. Leenheer

Humic and fulvic acids: sink or source in the availability of metals to the marine bivalves Macoma balthicaand Potamocorbula amurensis?

Humic acids (HA) and fulvic acids (FA) are common forms of organic matter in marine sedirnents, and are routinely ingested by deposit- and suspension-feeding animals. These compounds may be a sink for metals, implying that once metals are bound to humic substances they are no longer available to food webs. A series of experiments was conducted to quantitatively examine this premise using 2 estuari
Authors
Alan Decho, Samuel N. Luoma

Interpretation of surface flux measurements in heterogeneous terrain during the Monsoon '90 experiment

A network of 9-m-tall surface flux measurement stations were deployed at eight sparsely vegetated sites during the Monsoon '90 experiment to measure net radiation, Q, soil heat flux, G, sensible heat flux, H (using eddy correlation), and latent heat flux, λE (using the energy balance equation). At four of these sites, 2-m-tall eddy correlation systems were used to measure all four fluxes directly.
Authors
D.I. Stannard, J.H. Blanford, William P. Kustas, W.D. Nichols, S.A. Amer, T.J. Schmugge, M.A. Weltz

Use of ground-based remotely sensed data for surface energy balance evaluation of a semiarid rangeland

An interdisciplinary field experiment was conducted to study the water and energy balance of a semiarid rangeland watershed in southeast Arizona during the summer of 1990. Two subwatersheds, one grass dominated and the other shrub dominated, were selected for intensive study with ground-based remote sensing systems and hydrometeorological instrumentation. Surface energy balance was evaluated at bo
Authors
M. S. Moran, William P. Kustas, A. Vidal, D.I. Stannard, J.H. Blanford, W.D. Nichols

Surface energy balance estimates at local and regional scales using optical remote sensing from an aircraft platform and atmospheric data collected over semiarid rangelands

Remotely sensed data in the visible, near-infrared, and thermal-infrared wave bands were collected from a low-flying aircraft during the Monsoon '90 field experiment. Monsoon '90 was a multidisciplinary experiment conducted in a semiarid watershed. It had as one of its objectives the quantification of hydrometeorological fluxes during the “monsoon” or wet season. The remote sensing observations al
Authors
William P. Kustas, M. S. Moran, K.S. Humes, D.I. Stannard, P. J. Pinter, L.E. Hipps, E. Swiatek, D.C. Goodrich

Transport of chromium and selenium in the suboxic zone of a shallow aquifer: Influence of redox and adsorption reactions

Breakthrough of Cr(VI) (chromate), Se(VI) (selenate), and O2 (dissolved oxygen) was observed in tracer tests conducted in a shallow, sand and gravel aquifer with mildly reducing conditions. Loss of Cr, probably due to reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III) and irreversible sorption of Cr(III), occurred along with slight retardation of Cr(VI), owing to reversible sorption. Reduction of Se(VI) and O2 was th
Authors
D.B. Kent, J.A. Davis, L.C.D. Anderson, B.A. Rea, T.D. Waite

Effect of atrazine on potential denitrification in aquifer sediments

Agriculturaf use of fertilizers and herbicides has often resulted in nitrate and atrazine contamination of the shallow aquifers that underlay cultivated fields. In several cases, the concentrations of atrazine and nitrate dissolved in ground water are positively correlated (Spalding ef al., 1979; Chen and Druliner, 1987; Spalding et al., 1989). Because simultaneous application of nitrate fertilize
Authors
P. M. Bradley, F. H. Chapelle, M.L. Jagucki, P. B. McMahon

Use of molecular techniques to evaluate the survival of a microorganism injected into an aquifer

A PCR primer set and an internal probe that are specific for Pseudomonas sp. strain B13, a 3-chlorobenzoate-metabolizing strain, were developed. Using this primer set and probe, we were able to detect Pseudomonas sp. strain B13 DNA sequences in DNA extracted from aquifer samples 14.5 months after Pseudomonas sp. strain B13 had been injected into a sand and gravel aquifer. This primer set and probe
Authors
S.M. Thiem, M.L. Krumme, R. L. Smith, J.M. Tiedje

Comparison of drilling reports and detailed geophysical analysis of ground-water production in bedrock wells

The most extensive data base for fractured bedrock aquifers consists of drilling reports maintained by various state agencies. We investigated the accuracy and reliability of such reports by comparing a representative set of reports for nine wells drilled by conventional air percussion methods in granite with a suite of geophysical logs for the same wells designed to identify the depths of fractur
Authors
Frederick Paillet, Russell Duncanson

Modeling of soil water retention from saturation to oven dryness

Most analytical formulas used to model moisture retention in unsaturated porous media have been developed for the wet range and are unsuitable for applications in which low water contents are important. We have developed two models that fit the entire range from saturation to oven dryness in a practical and physically realistic way with smooth, continuous functions that have few parameters. Both m
Authors
Cinzia Rossi, John R. Nimmo

Movements of water, solutes, and stable isotopes in the unsaturated zones of two sand plains in the upper Midwest

Four month-long field experiments investigated movements of water and solutes through unsaturated sand plains near Princeton, Minnesota, and Oakes, North Dakota. Atrazine and bromide were applied to bare soils and soils planted with corn. The field plots were irrigated according to local farming practices. At the end of each experiment, unsaturated soils were analyzed for atrazine and bromide conc
Authors
Stephen C. Komor, Douglas G. Emerson