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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: 4098

Hydraulic and geochemical framework of the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory vadose zone Hydraulic and geochemical framework of the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory vadose zone

Questions of major importance for subsurface contaminant transport at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) include (i) travel times to the aquifer, both average or typical values and the range of values to be expected, and (ii) modes of contaminant transport, especially sorption processes. The hydraulic and geochemical framework within which these questions...
Authors
John R. Nimmo, Joseph P. Rousseau, Kim S. Perkins, Kenneth G. Stollenwerk, Pierre D. Glynn, Roy C. Bartholomay, LeRoy L. Knobel

Importance of clay size minerals for Fe(III) respiration in a petroleum-contaminated aquifer Importance of clay size minerals for Fe(III) respiration in a petroleum-contaminated aquifer

The availability of Fe(III)-bearing minerals for dissimilatory Fe(III) reduction was evaluated in sediments from a petroleum-contaminated sandy aquifer near Bemidji, Minnesota (USA). First, the sediments from a contaminated area of the aquifer, in which Fe(III) reduction was the predominant terminal electron accepting process, were compared with sediments from a nearby, uncontaminated...
Authors
Evgenya S. Shelobolina, Robert T. Anderson, Yury N. Vodyanitskii, Anatolii V. Sivtsov, Richard Yuretich, Derek R. Lovely

PHAST--a program for simulating ground-water flow, solute transport, and multicomponent geochemical reactions PHAST--a program for simulating ground-water flow, solute transport, and multicomponent geochemical reactions

The computer program PHAST simulates multi-component, reactive solute transport in three-dimensional saturated ground-water flow systems. PHAST is a versatile ground-water flow and solute-transport simulator with capabilities to model a wide range of equilibrium and kinetic geochemical reactions. The flow and transport calculations are based on a modified version of HST3D that is...
Authors
David L. Parkhurst, Kenneth L. Kipp, Peter Engesgaard, Scott R. Charlton

Organic contaminants associated with suspended sediment collected during five cruises of the Mississippi River and its principal tributaries, May 1988 to June 1990 Organic contaminants associated with suspended sediment collected during five cruises of the Mississippi River and its principal tributaries, May 1988 to June 1990

Suspended-sediment samples were obtained from sites along the Mississippi River and its principal tributaries to determine the presence of halogenated hydrophobic organic compounds on the suspended sediment smaller than 63 micrometers. Sample collection involved pumping discharge-weighted volumes of river water along a cross section of the river into a continuous-flow centrifuge to...
Authors
Colleen E. Rostad, LaDonna M. Bishop, Geoffrey S. Ellis, Thomas J. Leiker, Stephanie G. Monsterleet, Wilfred E. Pereira

Winter orographic precipitation ratios in the Sierra Nevada: Large-scale atmospheric circulations and hydrologic consequences Winter orographic precipitation ratios in the Sierra Nevada: Large-scale atmospheric circulations and hydrologic consequences

The extent to which winter precipitation is orographically enhanced within the Sierra Nevada of California varies from storm to storm, and season to season, from occasions when precipitation rates at low and high altitudes are almost the same to instances when precipitation rates at middle elevations (considered here) can be as much as 30 times more than at the base of the range...
Authors
M. Dettinger, K. Redmond, D. Cayan

Near-field receiving water monitoring of a benthic community near the Palo Alto Water Quality Control Plant in south San Francisco Bay: February 1974 through December 2003 Near-field receiving water monitoring of a benthic community near the Palo Alto Water Quality Control Plant in south San Francisco Bay: February 1974 through December 2003

Analyses of the benthic community structure of a mudflat in South San Francisco Bay over a 29-year period show that changes in the community have occurred concurrent with reduced concentrations of metals in the sediment and in the tissues of the biosentinal clam Macoma balthica from the same area. The community has shifted from being dominated by several opportunistic species to a...
Authors
Michelle K. Shouse, Francis Parcheso, Janet K. Thompson

Uptake pathway for Ag bioaccumulation in three benthic invertebrates exposed to contaminated sediments Uptake pathway for Ag bioaccumulation in three benthic invertebrates exposed to contaminated sediments

We exposed 3 benthic invertebrates, the clam Macoma balthica, the polychaete Neanthes arenaceodentataand the amphipod Leptocheirus plumulosus, to Ag-contaminated sediments to evaluate the relative importance of various uptake routes (sediments, porewater or overlying water, and supplementary food) for Ag bioaccumulation. Silver bioaccumulation was evaluated at 4 levels of sediment Ag (0...
Authors
H. Yoo, J.-S. Lee, B.-G. Lee, I.T. Lee, C.E. Schlekat, C.-H. Koh, S. N. Luoma

Using chromium stable isotope ratios to quantify Cr(VI) reduction: Lack of sorption effects Using chromium stable isotope ratios to quantify Cr(VI) reduction: Lack of sorption effects

Chromium stable isotope values can be effectively used to monitor reduction of Cr(VI) in natural waters. We investigate effects of sorption during transport of Cr(VI) which may also shift Cr isotopes values, complicating efforts to quantify reduction. This study shows that Cr stable isotope fractionation caused by sorption is negligible. Equilibrium fractionation of Cr stable isotopes...
Authors
A.S. Ellis, T.M. Johnson, T.D. Bullen

Tire-wear particles as a source of zinc to the environment Tire-wear particles as a source of zinc to the environment

Tire-tread material has a zinc (Zn) content of about 1 wt %. The quantity of tread material lost to road surfaces by abrasion has not been well characterized. Two approaches were used to assess the magnitude of this nonpoint source of Zn in the U.S. for the period 1936−1999. In the first approach, tread-wear rates from the automotive engineering literature were used in conjunction with...
Authors
T.B. Councell, K.U. Duckenfield, E. R. Landa, E. Callender

Surface complexation model of uranyl sorption on Georgia kaolinite Surface complexation model of uranyl sorption on Georgia kaolinite

The adsorption of uranyl on standard Georgia kaolinites (KGa-1 and KGa-1B) was studied as a function of pH (3–10), total U (1 and 10 μmol/l), and mass loading of clay (4 and 40 g/l). The uptake of uranyl in air-equilibrated systems increased with pH and reached a maximum in the near-neutral pH range. At higher pH values, the sorption decreased due to the presence of aqueous uranyl...
Authors
T.E. Payne, J.A. Davis, G.R. Lumpkin, R. Chisari, T.D. Waite

Transport and time lag of chlorofluorocarbon gases in the unsaturated zone, Rabis Creek, Denmark Transport and time lag of chlorofluorocarbon gases in the unsaturated zone, Rabis Creek, Denmark

Transport of chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) gases through the unsaturated zone to the water table is affected by gas diffusion, air–water exchange (solubility), sorption to the soil matrix, advective–dispersive transport in the water phase, and, in some cases, anaerobic degradation. In deep unsaturated zones, this may lead to a time lag between entry of gases at the land surface and recharge...
Authors
Peter Engesgaard, Anker L. Højberg, Klaus Hinsby, Karsten H. Jensen, Troels Laier, Flemming Larsen, Eurybiades Busenberg, Niel Plummer
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