Kimberlie Perkins
Kimberlie Perkins is a Research Hydrologist for the USGS Water Resources Mission Area.
Education:
San Jose State University: M.S. in Geology, December 2005.
University of California, Berkeley: B.S. in Soil Science, December 1996
Research Experience:
1997- Present: Research Hydrologist, Water Mission Area, Earth Surface Processes Division, Water Budget Branch
Research Interests:
- Land use changes and their hydrologic influence on ecosystems.
- Understanding water flow and contaminant transport in the unsaturated zone using a combination of laboratory measurements, field experiments, and modeling.
- Aquifer recharge estimation techniques.
- Laboratory measurement and modeling of unsaturated hydraulic properties of porous materials.
- Development of physically-based models for estimating hydraulic properties without the need for direct measurement.
- Field techniques for measuring and quantifying hydrologic processes.
- Mechanisms and quantification of preferential flow in the unsaturated zone.
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 37
Hydrologic characterization of desert soils with varying degrees of pedogenesis: 2. Inverse modeling for eff ective properties Hydrologic characterization of desert soils with varying degrees of pedogenesis: 2. Inverse modeling for eff ective properties
To understand their relation to pedogenic development, soil hydraulic properties in the Mojave Desert were investi- gated for three deposit types: (i) recently deposited sediments in an active wash, (ii) a soil of early Holocene age, and (iii) a highly developed soil of late Pleistocene age. Eff ective parameter values were estimated for a simplifi ed model based on Richards' equation...
Authors
B.B. Mirus, K. S. Perkins, J. R. Nimmo, K. Singha
Laboratory-Measured and Property-Transfer Modeled Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity of Snake River Plain Aquifer Sediments at the Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Laboratory-Measured and Property-Transfer Modeled Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity of Snake River Plain Aquifer Sediments at the Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho
Sediments are believed to comprise as much as 50 percent of the Snake River Plain aquifer thickness in some locations within the Idaho National Laboratory. However, the hydraulic properties of these deep sediments have not been well characterized and they are not represented explicitly in the current conceptual model of subregional scale ground-water flow. The purpose of this study is to...
Authors
Kim S. Perkins
Effect of soil disturbance on recharging fluxes: Case study on the Snake River Plain, Idaho National Laboratory, USA Effect of soil disturbance on recharging fluxes: Case study on the Snake River Plain, Idaho National Laboratory, USA
Soil structural disturbance influences the downward flow of water that percolates deep enough to become aquifer recharge. Data from identical experiments in an undisturbed silt-loam soil and in an adjacent simulated waste trench composed of the same soil material, but disturbed, included (1) laboratory- and field-measured unsaturated hydraulic properties and (2) field-measured transient...
Authors
J. R. Nimmo, K. S. Perkins
Property-Transfer Modeling to Estimate Unsaturated Hydraulic Conductivity of Deep Sediments at the Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Property-Transfer Modeling to Estimate Unsaturated Hydraulic Conductivity of Deep Sediments at the Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho
The unsaturated zone at the Idaho National Laboratory is complex, comprising thick basalt flow sequences interbedded with thinner sedimentary layers. Understanding the highly nonlinear relation between water content and hydraulic conductivity within the sedimentary interbeds is one element in predicting water flow and solute transport processes in this geologically complex environment...
Authors
Kim S. Perkins, Kari A. Winfield
Factors influencing ground-water recharge in the eastern United States Factors influencing ground-water recharge in the eastern United States
Ground-water recharge estimates for selected locations in the eastern half of the United States were obtained by Darcian and chloride-tracer methods and compared using statistical analyses. Recharge estimates derived from unsaturated-zone (RUZC) and saturated-zone (RSZC) chloride mass balance methods are less variable (interquartile ranges or IQRs are 9.5 and 16.1 cm/yr, respectively)...
Authors
B. T. Nolan, R. W. Healy, P.E. Taber, K. Perkins, K.J. Hitt, D.M. Wolock
Gas-partitioning tracer test to quantify trapped gas during recharge Gas-partitioning tracer test to quantify trapped gas during recharge
Dissolved helium and bromide tracers were used to evaluate trapped gas during an infiltration pond experiment. Dissolved helium preferentially partitioned into trapped gas bubbles, or other pore air, because of its low solubility in water. This produced observed helium retardation factors of as much as 12 relative to bromide. Numerical simulations of helium breakthrough with both...
Authors
V.M. Heilweil, D. K. Solomon, K. S. Perkins, K. M. Ellett
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
Measurement of sedimentary interbed hydraulic properties and their hydrologic influence near the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory Measurement of sedimentary interbed hydraulic properties and their hydrologic influence near the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory
Disposal of wastewater to unlined infiltration ponds near the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center (INTEC), formerly known as the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant, at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) has resulted in the formation of perched water bodies in the unsaturated zone (Cecil and others, 1991). The unsaturated zone at INEEL comprises...
Authors
Kim S. Perkins
Estimating spatial variability of recharge in southern New Jersey from unsaturated-zone measurements Estimating spatial variability of recharge in southern New Jersey from unsaturated-zone measurements
Spatial variability of recharge in southern New Jersey was studied by sampling the unsat-urated zone at 48 sites distributed over approximately 930 square kilometers. Samples of unsaturated-zone sediment were collected during the summer and fall of 1996. Unsaturated flow was calculated using moisture-content data and estimates of conductivity and matric potential derived from sediment...
Authors
Arthur L. Baehr, Leon J. Kauffman, Kimberlie Perkins, Bernard T. Nolan
Kilometer-scale rapid transport of naphthalene sulfonate tracer in the unsaturated zone at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory Kilometer-scale rapid transport of naphthalene sulfonate tracer in the unsaturated zone at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory
To investigate possible long-range flow paths through the interbedded basalts and sediments of a 200-m-thick unsaturated zone, we applied a chemical tracer to seasonally filled infiltration ponds on the Snake River Plain in Idaho. This site is near the Subsurface Disposal Area for radioactive and other hazardous waste at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory. Within...
Authors
John R. Nimmo, Kim S. Perkins, Peter E. Rose, Joseph P. Rousseau, Brennon R. Orr, Brian V. Twining, Steven R. Anderson
Measurement of hydraulic properties of the B-C interbed and their influence on contaminant transport in the unsaturated zone at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, Idaho Measurement of hydraulic properties of the B-C interbed and their influence on contaminant transport in the unsaturated zone at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, Idaho
No abstract available.
Authors
K. S. Perkins, J. R. Nimmo
Hydrologic and meteorological data for an unsaturated-zone study area near the Radioactive Waste Management Complex, Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, Idaho, 1997 to 1999 Hydrologic and meteorological data for an unsaturated-zone study area near the Radioactive Waste Management Complex, Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, Idaho, 1997 to 1999
The Radioactive Waste Management Complex (RWMC) Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA) at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) has been used for burial of radioactive waste since 1952. In 1985, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, began a multi-phase study of the geohydrology of the RWMC to provide a basis for estimating...
Authors
Kimberlie S. Perkins
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 37
Hydrologic characterization of desert soils with varying degrees of pedogenesis: 2. Inverse modeling for eff ective properties Hydrologic characterization of desert soils with varying degrees of pedogenesis: 2. Inverse modeling for eff ective properties
To understand their relation to pedogenic development, soil hydraulic properties in the Mojave Desert were investi- gated for three deposit types: (i) recently deposited sediments in an active wash, (ii) a soil of early Holocene age, and (iii) a highly developed soil of late Pleistocene age. Eff ective parameter values were estimated for a simplifi ed model based on Richards' equation...
Authors
B.B. Mirus, K. S. Perkins, J. R. Nimmo, K. Singha
Laboratory-Measured and Property-Transfer Modeled Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity of Snake River Plain Aquifer Sediments at the Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Laboratory-Measured and Property-Transfer Modeled Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity of Snake River Plain Aquifer Sediments at the Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho
Sediments are believed to comprise as much as 50 percent of the Snake River Plain aquifer thickness in some locations within the Idaho National Laboratory. However, the hydraulic properties of these deep sediments have not been well characterized and they are not represented explicitly in the current conceptual model of subregional scale ground-water flow. The purpose of this study is to...
Authors
Kim S. Perkins
Effect of soil disturbance on recharging fluxes: Case study on the Snake River Plain, Idaho National Laboratory, USA Effect of soil disturbance on recharging fluxes: Case study on the Snake River Plain, Idaho National Laboratory, USA
Soil structural disturbance influences the downward flow of water that percolates deep enough to become aquifer recharge. Data from identical experiments in an undisturbed silt-loam soil and in an adjacent simulated waste trench composed of the same soil material, but disturbed, included (1) laboratory- and field-measured unsaturated hydraulic properties and (2) field-measured transient...
Authors
J. R. Nimmo, K. S. Perkins
Property-Transfer Modeling to Estimate Unsaturated Hydraulic Conductivity of Deep Sediments at the Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Property-Transfer Modeling to Estimate Unsaturated Hydraulic Conductivity of Deep Sediments at the Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho
The unsaturated zone at the Idaho National Laboratory is complex, comprising thick basalt flow sequences interbedded with thinner sedimentary layers. Understanding the highly nonlinear relation between water content and hydraulic conductivity within the sedimentary interbeds is one element in predicting water flow and solute transport processes in this geologically complex environment...
Authors
Kim S. Perkins, Kari A. Winfield
Factors influencing ground-water recharge in the eastern United States Factors influencing ground-water recharge in the eastern United States
Ground-water recharge estimates for selected locations in the eastern half of the United States were obtained by Darcian and chloride-tracer methods and compared using statistical analyses. Recharge estimates derived from unsaturated-zone (RUZC) and saturated-zone (RSZC) chloride mass balance methods are less variable (interquartile ranges or IQRs are 9.5 and 16.1 cm/yr, respectively)...
Authors
B. T. Nolan, R. W. Healy, P.E. Taber, K. Perkins, K.J. Hitt, D.M. Wolock
Gas-partitioning tracer test to quantify trapped gas during recharge Gas-partitioning tracer test to quantify trapped gas during recharge
Dissolved helium and bromide tracers were used to evaluate trapped gas during an infiltration pond experiment. Dissolved helium preferentially partitioned into trapped gas bubbles, or other pore air, because of its low solubility in water. This produced observed helium retardation factors of as much as 12 relative to bromide. Numerical simulations of helium breakthrough with both...
Authors
V.M. Heilweil, D. K. Solomon, K. S. Perkins, K. M. Ellett
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
Measurement of sedimentary interbed hydraulic properties and their hydrologic influence near the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory Measurement of sedimentary interbed hydraulic properties and their hydrologic influence near the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory
Disposal of wastewater to unlined infiltration ponds near the Idaho Nuclear Technology and Engineering Center (INTEC), formerly known as the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant, at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) has resulted in the formation of perched water bodies in the unsaturated zone (Cecil and others, 1991). The unsaturated zone at INEEL comprises...
Authors
Kim S. Perkins
Estimating spatial variability of recharge in southern New Jersey from unsaturated-zone measurements Estimating spatial variability of recharge in southern New Jersey from unsaturated-zone measurements
Spatial variability of recharge in southern New Jersey was studied by sampling the unsat-urated zone at 48 sites distributed over approximately 930 square kilometers. Samples of unsaturated-zone sediment were collected during the summer and fall of 1996. Unsaturated flow was calculated using moisture-content data and estimates of conductivity and matric potential derived from sediment...
Authors
Arthur L. Baehr, Leon J. Kauffman, Kimberlie Perkins, Bernard T. Nolan
Kilometer-scale rapid transport of naphthalene sulfonate tracer in the unsaturated zone at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory Kilometer-scale rapid transport of naphthalene sulfonate tracer in the unsaturated zone at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory
To investigate possible long-range flow paths through the interbedded basalts and sediments of a 200-m-thick unsaturated zone, we applied a chemical tracer to seasonally filled infiltration ponds on the Snake River Plain in Idaho. This site is near the Subsurface Disposal Area for radioactive and other hazardous waste at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory. Within...
Authors
John R. Nimmo, Kim S. Perkins, Peter E. Rose, Joseph P. Rousseau, Brennon R. Orr, Brian V. Twining, Steven R. Anderson
Measurement of hydraulic properties of the B-C interbed and their influence on contaminant transport in the unsaturated zone at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, Idaho Measurement of hydraulic properties of the B-C interbed and their influence on contaminant transport in the unsaturated zone at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, Idaho
No abstract available.
Authors
K. S. Perkins, J. R. Nimmo
Hydrologic and meteorological data for an unsaturated-zone study area near the Radioactive Waste Management Complex, Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, Idaho, 1997 to 1999 Hydrologic and meteorological data for an unsaturated-zone study area near the Radioactive Waste Management Complex, Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, Idaho, 1997 to 1999
The Radioactive Waste Management Complex (RWMC) Subsurface Disposal Area (SDA) at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) has been used for burial of radioactive waste since 1952. In 1985, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Energy, began a multi-phase study of the geohydrology of the RWMC to provide a basis for estimating...
Authors
Kimberlie S. Perkins