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At least 217 records · Page 12Linked to original sources

USGS1987

Increased solubility of quartz in water due to complexing by organic compounds

Quartz is the most stable natural solid phase of silica. It weathers extremely slowly at the Earth's surface 1 , and often resists weathering even after all other silicate minerals have been degraded. However, there is ample evidence from both ancient and modern environments indicating enhanced dissolution and mobility of silica under conditions that cannot easily be explained by the inorganic controls of quartz solubility 2 . Increased solubility of quartz has been observed particularly in soils rich in organic material; however, no direct link between dissolved organic carbon and dissolved silica has been identified 3 . Here we present evidence for an increase in the solubility of quartz in a natural water brought about by dissolved organic compounds. These compounds were produced by the biodegradation of petroleum, and consist largely of a complex mixture of organic acids. We propose that silica is being complexed and mobilized by these organic acids in waters having close to neutral p H.

Nature↗

USGS2014

One-Water Hydrologic Flow Model (MODFLOW-OWHM)

The One-Water Hydrologic Flow Model (MF-OWHM) is a MODFLOW-based integrated hydrologic flow model (IHM) that is the most complete version, to date, of the MODFLOW family of hydrologic simulators needed for the analysis of a broad range of conjunctive-use issues. Conjunctive use is the combined use of groundwater and surface water. MF-OWHM allows the simulation, analysis, and management of nearly all components of human and natural water movement and use in a physically-based supply-and-demand framework. MF-OWHM is based on the Farm Process for MODFLOW-2005 (MF-FMP2) combined with Local Grid Refinement (LGR) for embedded models to allow use of the Farm Process (FMP) and Streamflow Routing (SFR) within embedded grids. MF-OWHM also includes new features such as the Surface-water Routing Process (SWR), Seawater Intrusion (SWI), and Riparian Evapotrasnpiration (RIP-ET), and new solvers such as Newton-Raphson (NWT) and nonlinear preconditioned conjugate gradient (PCGN). This IHM also includes new connectivities to expand the linkages for deformation-, flow-, and head-dependent flows. Deformation-dependent flows are simulated through the optional linkage to simulated land subsidence with a vertically deforming mesh. Flow-dependent flows now include linkages between the new SWR with SFR and FMP, as well as connectivity with embedded models for SFR and FMP through LGR. Head-dependent flows now include a modified Hydrologic Flow Barrier Package (HFB) that allows optional transient HFB capabilities, and the flow between any two layers that are adjacent along a depositional or erosional boundary or displaced along a fault. MF-OWHM represents a complete operational hydrologic model that fully links the movement and use of groundwater, surface water, and imported water for consumption by irrigated agriculture, but also of water used in urban areas and by natural vegetation. Supply and demand components of water use are analyzed under demand-driven and supply-constrained conditions. From large- to small-scale settings, MF-OWHM has the unique set of capabilities to simulate and analyze historical, present, and future conjunctive-use conditions. MF-OWHM is especially useful for the analysis of agricultural water use where few data are available for pumpage, land use, or agricultural information. The features presented in this IHM include additional linkages with SFR, SWR, Drain-Return (DRT), Multi-Node Wells (MNW1 and MNW2), and Unsaturated-Zone Flow (UZF). Thus, MF-OWHM helps to reduce the loss of water during simulation of the hydrosphere and helps to account for “all of the water everywhere and all of the time.” In addition to groundwater, surface-water, and landscape budgets, MF-OWHM provides more options for observations of land subsidence, hydraulic properties, and evapotranspiration (ET) than previous models. Detailed landscape budgets combined with output of estimates of actual evapotranspiration facilitates linkage to remotely sensed observations as input or as additional observations for parameter estimation or water-use analysis. The features of FMP have been extended to allow for temporally variable water-accounting units (farms) that can be linked to land-use models and the specification of both surface-water and groundwater allotments to facilitate sustainability analysis and connectivity to the Groundwater Management Process (GWM). An example model described in this report demonstrates the application of MF-OWHM with the addition of land subsidence and a vertically deforming mesh, delayed recharge through an unsaturated zone, rejected infiltration in a riparian area, changes in demand caused by deficiency in supply, and changes in multi-aquifer pumpage caused by constraints imposed through the Farm Process and the MNW2 Package, and changes in surface water such as runoff, streamflow, and canal flows through SFR and SWR linkages.

Techniques and Methods↗

USGS2011

Influence of dissolved organic matter on the environmental fate of metals, nanoparticles, and colloids

We have known for decades that dissolved organic matter (DOM) plays a critical role in the biogeochemical cycling of trace metals and the mobility of colloidal particles in aquatic environments. In recent years, concerns about the ecological and human health effects of metal-based engineered nanoparticles released into natural waters have increased efforts to better define the nature of DOM interactions with metals and surfaces. Nanomaterials exhibit unique properties and enhanced reactivities that are not apparent in larger materials of the same composition 1,2 or dissolved ions of metals that comprise the nanoparticles. These nanoparticle-specific properties generally result from the relatively large proportion of the atoms located at the surface, which leads to very high specific surface areas and a high proportion of crystal lattice imperfections relative to exposed surface area. Nanoscale colloids are ubiquitous in nature,2 and many engineered nanomaterials have analogs in the natural world. The properties of these materials, whether natural or manmade, are poorly understood, and new challenges have been presented in assessing their environmental fate. These challenges are particularly relevant in aquatic environments where interactions with DOM are key, albeit often overlooked, moderators of reactivity at the molecular and nanocolloidal scales.

Environmental Science & Technology↗

USGS1991

Aquatic fulvic acids in microbially based ecosystems: results from two desert lakes in Antarctica

These lakes receive very limited input of organic material from the surrounding barren desert, but they sustain algal and bacterial populations under permanent ice cover. One lake has an extensive anoxic zone and high salinities; the other is oxic and has low salinities. Despite these differences, fulvic acids from both lakes had similar elemental compositions, carbon distributions, and amino acid contents, indicating that the chemistry of microbially derived fulvic acvids is not strongly influenced by chemical conditions in the water column. Compared to fulvic acids from other natural waters, these fulvic acids have low C:N atomic ratios (19-25) and low contents of aromatic carbons (5-7% of total carbon atoms); they are most similar to marine fulvic acids. -from Authors

Limnology and Oceanography↗

USGS1967

Hydrology of the National Reactor Testing Station, Idaho, 1966

This annual report describes studies by the U. S. Geological Survey, sponsored by the U. S. Atomic Energy Commission, to determine the hydrologic effects of disposal of radioactive waste to the ground at the National Reactor Testing Station. The project has involved the collection and analyses of ground-and surface-water samples for radiometric and chemical changes. Results have been evaluated and mapped. Ground-water levels have also been mapped over the station. The net ground-water consumption after pumpage and waste injection has been determined. Two billion gallons of water were pumped during 1966 of which 40 percent was metered and returned to the Snake Plain aquifer. A record runoff of the Big Lost River during 1965 and 1966 induced a large amount of recharge to the Snake Plain aquifer. The recharge caused water levels to rise as much as six feet, but apparently did not have a great effect on the concentrations of waste products in the ground water. Pressure transmission, or mass transfer effects from the recharge, were observed as far as 50 miles southwest of the river. Tritium is the primary radioactive waste product discharged to the subsurface. Several aspects of tritium disposal have been studied in detail at the TRA (Test Reactor Area) and the ICPP (Idaho Chemical Processing Plant) areas. The distribution of waste tritium in the Snake Plain aquifer has been mapped, and background levels were determined to range from 0.05 to 0.1 pCi/m1 (picocuries per milliliter). Waste tritium in water from the Snake Plain aquifer has been detected 4-1/2 miles south of the ICPP. An estimated mass balance of total tritium remaining in the Snake Plain aquifer is presented for the TRA and ICPP areas. About 21,500 Ci (curies) of tritium at the ICPP and about 3,700 Ci at the TRA have been disposed from 1952 through 1966. About 14,000 Ci and 2,700 Ci of tritium, respectively, should remain after radioactive decay. Similar amounts are indicated to be present in the ground water. Waste tritium has been used as a tracer in studies of the complex flow characteristics of the aquifer in the ICPP area. Dissolved chromium has been used to trace TRA pond waste water in perched ground-water bodies and downgradient 2-1/2 miles in the Snake Plain aquifer. Concentrations of hexavalent chromium ranged as high as 1.7 ppm (parts per million) in the perched water and 0.4 ppm in the water from the Snake Plain aquifer. Chromium serves as a good tracer of TRA wastes because it does not occur in nearby ICPP wastes, is not usually present in natural waters, and can be determined in very low concentrations. Natural fluoride in the water of the Snake Plain aquifer has been used to trace the ground-water flow downgradient from the northeast end of the Snake River Plain. The fluoride, which is dissolved from certain rocks, indicates recharge areas and flow paths in the aquifer. A project to test the feasibility of disposing radioactive gases into the ground is presently underway. A seismic survey was used to map surface sediment thickness, and two test wells were cored to evaluate potential injection-well sites. A "breathing" well has been instrumented to study flow rates, temperature, humidity, and other aspects of vertical flow of air in the well. Results of the continuing study are presented. Studies made on several wells which had vertically flowing borehole water indicated that the physical and chemical properties of the water are influenced by the flow. One well with downward flow had a head difference of 0.01 to 0.07 foot between two permeable zones throughout the year.

Idaho↗

USGS1966

Organic acids in naturally colored surface waters

Most of the organic matter in naturally colored surface waters consists of a mixture of carboxylic acids or salts of these acids. Many of the acids color the water yellow to brown; however, not all of the acids are colored. These acids range from simple to complex, but predominantly they are nonvolatile polymeric carboxylic acids. The organic acids were recovered from the water by two techniques: continuous liquid-liquid extraction with n-butanol and vacuum evaporation at 50?C (centigrade). The isolated acids were studied by techniques of gas, paper, and column chromatography and infrared spectroscopy. About 10 percent of the acids recovered were volatile or could be made volatile for gas chromatographic analysis. Approximately 30 of these carboxylic acids were isolated, and 13 of them were individually identified. The predominant part of the total acids could not be made volatile for gas chromatographic analysis. Infrared examination of many column chromatographic fractions indicated that these nonvolatile substances are primarily polymeric hydroxy carboxylic acids having aromatic and olefinic unsaturation. The evidence suggests that some of these acids result from polymerization in aqueous solution. Elemental analysis of the sodium fusion products disclosed the absence of nitrogen, sulfur, and halogens.

Water Supply Paper↗

USGS2010

Simulation of fluid flow and energy transport processes associated with high-level radioactive waste disposal in unsaturated alluvium

Many parts of the Great Basin have thick zones of unsaturated alluvium which might be suitable for disposing of high-level radioactive wastes. A mathematical model accounting for the coupled transport of energy, water (vapor and liquid), and dry air was used to analyze one-dimensional, vertical transport above and below an areally extensive repository. Numerical simulations were conducted for a hypothetical repository containing spent nuclear fuel and located 100 m below land surface. Initial steady state downward water fluxes of zero (hydrostatic) and 0.0003 m yr −1 were considered in an attempt to bracket the likely range in natural water flux. Predicted temperatures within the repository peaked after approximately 50 years and declined slowly thereafter in response to the decreasing intensity of the radioactive heat source. The alluvium near the repository experienced a cycle of drying and rewetting in both cases. The extent of the dry zone was strongly controlled by the mobility of liquid water near the repository under natural conditions. In the case of initial hydrostatic conditions, the dry zone extended approximately 10 m above and 15 m below the repository. For the case of a natural flux of 0.0003 m yr −1 the relative permeability of water near the repository was initially more than 30 times the value under hydrostatic conditions, consequently the dry zone extended only about 2 m above and 5 m below the repository. In both cases a significant perturbation in liquid saturation levels persisted for several hundred years. This analysis illustrates the extreme sensitivity of model predictions to initial conditions and parameters, such as relative permeability and moisture characteristic curves, that are often poorly known.

Water Resources Research↗

USGS2000

Stable hydrogen and oxygen isotope ratios for selected sites of the U.S. Geological Survey's NASQAN and benchmark surface-water networks

Increasingly, hydrologic studies require information on the isotopic composition of natural waters. This report presents stable hydrogen (delta2H) and oxygen isotope ratios (delta18O) from 391 selected sites of the U.S. Geological Survey's National Stream Quality Accounting Network (NASQAN) and BENCHMARK surface water networks collected during the years 1984-1987. Depth-integrated samples were collected and analyzed from each site bimonthly or quarterly for about 3 years.

Open-File Report↗

USGS1984

Isolation of organic acids from large volumes of water by adsorption chromatography

The concentrations of dissolved organic carbon from most natural waters ranges from 1 to 20 milligrams carbon per liter, of which approximately 75 percent are organic acids. These acids can be chromatographically fractionated into hydrophobic organic acids, such as humic substances, and hydrophilic organic acids. To effectively study any of these organic acids, they must be isolated from other organic and inorganic species, and concentrated. Usually, large volumes of water must be processed to obtain sufficient quantities of material, and adsorption chromatography on synthetic, macroporous resins has proven to be a particularly effective method for this purpose. The use of the nonionic Amberlite XAD-8 and Amberlite XAD-4 resins and the anion exchange resin Duolite A-7 for isolating and concentrating organic acids from water is presented.

Book↗

USGS2020

Effects of flow diversion on Snake Creek and its riparian cottonwood forest, Great Basin National Park

Snake Creek flows east from the southern Snake Range in Nevada over complex lithology before leaving Great Basin National Park. The river travels over a section of karst limestone where some surface water naturally recharges the groundwater flow system. In 1961 a water diversion pipeline was constructed by downstream water users to transport surface water through the groundwater recharge zone to reduce potential water losses. The diversion pipeline dewaters a 5-km reach for most of the year by transporting water past the recharge zone then returning it to the channel downstream. Snake Creek was incorporated into the newly established Great Basin National Park in 1986, and today park managers and visitors are concerned that the diversion has destabilized Snake Creek’s riparian ecosystem in this arid region where it has high ecological value. The objectives of this study were to 1) document riparian cottonwood forest conditions in the pipeline-dewatered (DW) reach, 2) evaluate Snake Creek water availability and whether it can support a healthy riparian ecosystem, and 3) determine if dewatering has shifted the fluvial system into an unnatural and poorly functioning state. We pursued these ecohydrological study objectives in 11 research investigations of Snake Creek’s DW reach and nearby reference reaches. The research investigations analyzed: 1) riparian forest condition, tree age, growth, and death; 2) tree ring chronologies through time and space; 3) hydroclimatic drivers of tree growth; 4) stable carbon isotopes extracted from tree rings; 5) cottonwood ecophysiology related to water transport and water stress; 6) historical aerial photography; 7) stand-level riparian forest production; 8) groundwater availability as related to surface water and plant rooting zones; 9) near-surface geophysics using electrical resistivity imaging; 10) channel and valley geomorphology; and 11) in-channel wood jams caused by fallen trees. Integrating these diverse research topics provided a full perspective of historical and modern conditions along Snake Creek. We found that modern hydrological conditions in Snake Creek’s DW reach could not maintain the drought-sensitive ecosystem. The riparian cottonwoods ( Populus angustifolia and P. angustifolia x P. trichocarpa ) have experienced significant dieback. Tree mortality was 2.4 times higher in the DW reach than in reference reaches, and surviving trees supported only 60% of the live canopy compared to trees in reference reaches. Changes in the DW reach forest began in the 1960s and became more severe during the last two decades. Stable carbon isotope ratios and branch dieback analyses both demonstrated initial forest adjustments related to water stress beginning in the early 1960s. Tree ring width chronologies indicated two periods of growth decline in the DW relative to control reaches. The first decline in the 1960s represented an immediate adjustment to the modified flow regime, and the second decline in the 2000s demonstrated reduced resilience to atmospheric drought. Aerial photos and stand-level forest production calculations indicated that substantial riparian forest decline occurred in the 1990s–2010s in the DW reach compared to reference reaches. Stable carbon isotope ratios and leaf water potentials revealed that trees in the DW reach experienced greater drought stress than those in reference reaches. Monitoring wells and electrical resistivity surveys both showed riparian water tables to be largely supported by in-channel surface water flow, indicating that the flow diversion removed water that recharges alluvial groundwater and sustains riparian plants. Areas of widespread tree mortality in the DW reach also corresponded to a larger and more unstable channel with a high instream wood load from fallen trees. Modern conditions of Snake Creek in the DW reach robustly suggest that dewatering the river and its associated riparian corridor adversely affected the riparian ecosystem. The degraded condition is likely to persist and intensify unless water is returned to the channel. As we documented during the wet 1980s and the scientific literature suggest, a partial recovery of the riparian ecosystem is likely possible with restored flows.

Nevada↗

USGS2002

Limitations in the use of commercial humic acids in water and soil research

Seven samples of commercial "humic acids", purchased from five different suppliers, were studied, and their characteristics were compared with humic and fulvic acids isolated from streams, soils, peat, leonardite, and a dopplerite sample. Cross-polarization and magic-angle spinning 13C NMR spectroscopy clearly shows pronounced differences between the commercial materials and all other samples. Elemental and infrared spectroscopic data do not show such clear-cut differences but can be used as supportive evidence, with the 13C NMR data, to substantiate the above distinctions. As a result of these differences and due to the general lack of information relating to the source, method of isolation, or other pretreatment of the commercial materials, these commercial products are not considered to be appropriate for use as analogues of true soil and water humic substances, in experiments designed to evaluate the nature and reactivity of humic substances in natural waters and soils.

Environmental Science & Technology↗

USGS1972

Water quality at Miami International Airport, Miami, Florida, 1971–72

The quality of water, sediment, and biota was determined at four sites in canals and drainage ditches at Miami International Airport (MIA) during high- and low-water periods and during summer and winter 1971–72. Concentrations of common ions, such as calcium, sodium, chloride, and magnesium, tended to be above average for fresh water because of periodic salt-water intrusion. Nitrogen, phosphorus, and pesticides were in higher concentrations than typical for undisturbed areas of south Florida, but not higher than usual for the urban coastal area, so it is not known to what extent these chemicals are attributable to surrounding urbanization. Heavy metals, oil and grease, and PCB's (polychlorinated biphenyls) were the best indicators of the effects of MIA on water quality. Concentations of the above were quite variable, high values for each were recorded and were probably associated with recent discharges from industrial sources. Arsenic, lead, iron, and chromium all exceeded, in one or more samples, the U.S. Public Health Service's recommended upper limits for metals in water. Only iron normally exceeds these standards in the natural waters of south Florida. PCB's were detected in most samples and were in concentrations up to 1,000 micrograms per kilogram in fish. In addition to pesticides and PCB's, another group of persistant chlorinated compounds, PCN's (polychlorinated naphthalenes) were detected in water, sediment, and fish. This is the first known detection of these compounds in the environment.

Open-File Report↗

USGS1982

Biota and biological principles of the aquatic environment

This is the third of several compilations of briefing papers on water quality by the U.S. Geological Survey. Each briefing paper is prepared in a simple, nontechnical, easy-to-understand manner. This U.S. Geological Survey Circular contains papers on selected organic substances in water. Briefing papers are included on ' Why study organic substances in water. ', ' Taste and odor in water ', and ' Classification and fractionation of organic solutes in natural waters'. (USGS)

Circular↗

USGS1981

Biota and biological parameters as environmental indicators

Circular↗

USGS1981

Organic substances in water

Circular↗

USGS1981

Infectious waterborne diseases

Circular↗

USGS1981

Microbiology of the aquatic environment

Circular↗

USGS2015

Hindcast of water availability in regional aquifer systems using MODFLOW Farm Process

Coupled groundwater and surface-water components of the hydrologic cycle can be simulated by the Farm Process for MODFLOW (MF-FMP) in both irrigated and non-irrigated areas and aquifer-storage and recovery systems. MF-FMP is being applied to three productive agricultural regions of different scale in the State of California, USA, to assess the availability of water and the impacts of alternative management decisions. Hindcast simulations are conducted for similar periods from the 1960s to near recent times. Historical groundwater pumpage is mostly unknown in one region (Central Valley) and is estimated by MF-FMP. In another region (Pajaro Valley), recorded pumpage is used to calibrate model-estimated pumpage. Multiple types of observations are used to estimate uncertain parameters, such as hydraulic, land-use, and farm properties. MF-FMP simulates how climate variability and water-import availability affect water demand and supply. MF-FMP can be used to predict water availability based on anticipated changes in anthropogenic or natural water demands. Keywords groundwater; surface-water; irrigation; water availability; response to climate variability/change

Conference Paper↗