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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: 4095

Fe(III)-reducing bacteria in deeply buried sediments of the Atlantic Coastal Plain Fe(III)-reducing bacteria in deeply buried sediments of the Atlantic Coastal Plain

The possibility that microorganisms are catalyzing the ongoing reduction of Fe(III) in the sediments of deep (20-250 m) aquifers was investigated. Acetate-oxidizing, Fe(III)-reducing bacteria were recovered from deep subsurface sediments, but only from sediments in which it appeared that Fe(III) reduction was the terminal electron-accepting process for oxidation of organic matter. The Fe...
Authors
Derek R. Lovley, F. H. Chapelle, Elizabeth J.P. Phillips

Solid-solution aqueous-solution equilibria: Thermodynamic theory and representation Solid-solution aqueous-solution equilibria: Thermodynamic theory and representation

Thorstenson and Plummer's (1977) "stoichiometric saturation' model is reviewed, and a general relation between stoichiometric saturation Kss constants and excess free energies of mixing is derived for a binary solid-solution B1-xCxA: GE = RT[ln Kss - xln(xKCA) - (l-x)ln((l-x)KBA)]. This equation allows a suitable excess free energy function, such as Guggenheim's (1937) sub-regular...
Authors
P. D. Glynn, E.J. Reardon

Occurrence, distributions, and transport of herbicides and their degradation products in the lower Mississippi river and its tributaries Occurrence, distributions, and transport of herbicides and their degradation products in the lower Mississippi river and its tributaries

The Mississippi River and its tributaries drain extensive agricultural regions of the midcontinental United States, where large amounts of herbicides are applied as weed control agents on crops such as corn and soybeans. Studies being conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey along the lower Mississippi River and its major tributaries, representing a 1930-km river reach, have confirmed...
Authors
W. E. Pereira

The surface area of soil organic matter The surface area of soil organic matter

The previously reported surface area for soil organic matter (SOM) of 560-800 m2/g as determined by the ethylene glycol (EG) retention method was reexamined by the standard BET method based on nitrogen adsorption at liquid nitrogen temperature. Test samples consisted of two high organic content soils, a freeze-dried soil humic acid, and an oven-dried soil humic acid. The measured BET...
Authors
C. T. Chiou, J.-F. Lee, S.A. Boyd

Prediction of stream volatilization coefficients Prediction of stream volatilization coefficients

Equations are developed for predicting the liquid-film and gas-film reference-substance parameters for quantifying volatilization of organic solutes from streams. Molecular weight and molecular-diffusion coefficients of the solute are used as correlating parameters. Equations for predicting molecular-diffusion coefficients of organic solutes in water and air are developed, with molecular...
Authors
Ronald E. Rathbun

Application of a hollow-fiber, tangential-flow device for sampling suspended bacteria and particles from natural waters Application of a hollow-fiber, tangential-flow device for sampling suspended bacteria and particles from natural waters

The design and application of a hollow-fiber tangential-flow filtration device has been used to concentrate bacteria and suspended particles from large volume surface water and groundwater samples (i.e., hundreds of liters). Filtrate tlux rates (4–8 L min−1) are equal to or faster than those of other devices that are based on continuous flow centrifugation and plate and frame filtration...
Authors
J.S. Kuwabara, R.W. Harvey

Nitrogen fixation dynamics of two diazotrophic communities in Mono Lake, California Nitrogen fixation dynamics of two diazotrophic communities in Mono Lake, California

Two types of diazotrophic microbial communities were found in the littoral zone of alkaline hypersaline Mono Lake, California. One consisted of anaerobic bacteria inhabiting the flocculent surface layers of sediments. Nitrogen fixation (acetylene reduction) by flocculent surface layers occurred under anaerobic conditions, was not stimulated by light or by additions of organic substrates...
Authors
R.S. Oremland

Effect of ten quaternary ammonium cations on tetrachloromethane sorption to clay from water Effect of ten quaternary ammonium cations on tetrachloromethane sorption to clay from water

The mineral surface of Wyoming bentonite (clay) was modified by replacing inorganic ions by each of 10 quaternary ammonium compounds, and tetrachloromethane sorption to the modified sorbents from water was studied. Tetrachloromethane sorption from solution to clay modified with tetramethyl-, tetraethyl-, benzyltrimethyl-, or benzyltriethylammonium cations generally is characterized by...
Authors
J. A. Smith

The occurrence and distribution of trace metals in the Mississippi River and its tributaries The occurrence and distribution of trace metals in the Mississippi River and its tributaries

Quantitative and semiquantitative analyses of dissolved trace metals are reported for designated sampling sites on the Mississippi River and its main tributaries utilizing depth-integrated and width-integrated sampling technology to collect statistically representative samples. Data are reported for three sampling periods, including: July-August 1987, November-December 1987, and May-June...
Authors
Howard E. Taylor, J.R. Garbarino, T.I. Brinton

Conducting field studies for testing pesticide leaching models Conducting field studies for testing pesticide leaching models

A variety of predictive models are being applied to evaluate the transport and transformation of pesticides in the environment. These include well known models such as the Pesticide Root Zone Model (PRZM), the Risk of Unsaturated-Saturated Transport and Transformation Interactions for Chemical Concentrations Model (RUSTIC) and the Groundwater Loading Effects of Agricultural Management...
Authors
Charles N. Smith, Rudolph S. Parrish, David S. Brown

Ground-water control of evaporite deposition Ground-water control of evaporite deposition

Topographically closed basins may be hydrologically open as a result of seepage losses to underlying or surrounding ground-water systems. In such cases, these losses can have a substantial control over the suite and the thicknesses of evaporite minerals formed in the basin. The ratio of ground-water outflow to inflow (flux ratio) in hydrologically open basins is as important in...
Authors
W.W. Wood, W. E. Sanford
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