Robert Zielinski
Robert Zielinski is currently an emeritus-volunteer with the uranium research group in Denver. He serves as an advisor/reviewer/mentor and provides support of field work, sample archiving, web page development, and the uranium research group library.
Robert Zielinski is a research chemist (retired-emeritus) in the USGS Central Energy Resources Team in Denver, Colorado. He earned a B.A. in chemistry from Rutgers University in 1967 and a Ph.D. in geochemistry from M.I.T. in 1972. He was awarded a National Research Council Postdoctoral Fellowship with the USGS from 1972-1973, and accepted a permanent research position in 1974. His research interests include the use of trace-element geochemistry and isotopic measurements to describe natural geologic processes and to evaluate the environmental impacts of energy resource development.
Robert Zielinski originally applied his expertise in trace-element geochemistry to better understand natural processes such as igneous rock petrogenesis, trace element mobility during alteration and weathering of volcanic rocks, uranium source rock evaluation, and uranium uptake in wetlands. More recently he has used trace elements and various stable and radiogenic isotopes to evaluate the environmental impacts of excess nutrients in the Everglades, historic uranium mining in the western U.S., historic coal mining in Colorado, and oil and gas development at various sites throughout the U.S. including two USGS research sites in Osage County, Oklahoma. Sampled media have included drill cores, soil, lake sediments, surface water, ground water, peat, coal fly ash, mine waste rock, and living vegetation. He is a recognized expert on the geochemistry of uranium and its decay products and on the use of uranium and radium isotopes to identify environmental impacts from anthropogenic sources of pollution such as uranium mill tailings, abandoned uranium mines and mine waste, radium-rich oilfield scales, and U-bearing phosphate fertilizers.
Dr. Zielinski is first author of 65 scientific publications and has presented a similar number of talks at national and international scientific meetings. He has served as a Project Chief, Section Leader, and coordinator of research. He served for thirteen years as an Associate Editor for Applied Geochemistry.
Currently he is an emeritus-volunteer with the uranium research group in Denver. He serves as an advisor/reviewer/mentor and provides support of field work, sample archiving, web page development, and the uranium research group library.
Science and Products
U.S. Geological Survey studies of water co-produced with oil and gas: Implications for future petroleum resource development
Environmental effects of produced waters at oilfield production sites in the Big Sinking Creek and Schumaker Ridge areas, Lee County, Kentucky
Radioactive Elements in Coal and Fly Ash: Abundance, Forms, and Environmental Significance
Natural or fertilizer-derived uranium in irrigation drainage: A case study in southeastern Colorado, U.S.A.
Use of 234U and 238U isotopes to evaluate contamination of near-surface groundwater with uranium-mill effluent: A case study in south-central Colorado, U.S.A.
Uraniferous waters of the Arkansas River valley, Colorado, U.S.A.: A function of geology and land use
Nitrogen isotopes in nitrate from surface water and shallow groundwater at Sixmile Creek, southeastern Colorado
Understanding our fragile environment; Lessons from geochemical studies
Petrogenesis and geological history of a uranium source rock: a case study in northeastern Washington, U.S.A.
Uranium in Holocene valley-fill sediments, and uranium, radon, and helium in waters, Lake Tahoe-Carson Range area, Nevada and California, U.S.A.
The aqueous geochemistry of uranium in a drainage containing uraniferous organic-rich sediments, Lake Tahoe area, Nevada, USA
The association of uranium with organic matter in Holocene peat: An experimental leaching study
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U.S. Geological Survey studies of water co-produced with oil and gas: Implications for future petroleum resource development
The U.S. Geological Survey is conducting research on the impacts of produced waters on petroleum resource development and the environment. Ongoing multidisciplinary investigations are focused on the 1) quantity and quality of current water production, 2) geologic and geochemical parameters that influence the viability of injection wells, and 3) processes that affect the dispersion of inorganic andAuthorsGeorge N. Breit, Yousif K. Kharaka, Robert A. Zielinski, C. A. Rice, Bruce D. Smith, Jennie L. RidgleyEnvironmental effects of produced waters at oilfield production sites in the Big Sinking Creek and Schumaker Ridge areas, Lee County, Kentucky
No abstract available.AuthorsJames K. Otton, R. A. Zielinski, D.E. Owen, Sigrid Asher-Bolinder, Laurel HallRadioactive Elements in Coal and Fly Ash: Abundance, Forms, and Environmental Significance
Coal is largely composed of organic matter, but it is the inorganic matter in coal—minerals and trace elements— that have been cited as possible causes of health, environmental, and technological problems associated with the use of coal. Some trace elements in coal are naturally radioactive. These radioactive elements include uranium (U), thorium (Th), and their numerous decay products, includingAuthorsRobert A. Zielinski, Robert B. FinkelmanNatural or fertilizer-derived uranium in irrigation drainage: A case study in southeastern Colorado, U.S.A.
Drainage from heavily cultivated soils may be contaminated with U that is leached from the soil or added as a trace constituent of PO4-based commercial fertilizer. The effect of decades-long application of U-rich fertilizer on the U concentration of irrigation drainage was investigated in a small (14.2 km2) drainage basin in southeastern Colorado. The basin was chosen because previous reports indiAuthorsR. A. Zielinski, S. Asher-Bolinder, A. L. Meier, C.A. Johnson, B. J. SzaboUse of 234U and 238U isotopes to evaluate contamination of near-surface groundwater with uranium-mill effluent: A case study in south-central Colorado, U.S.A.
The 234U/238U alpha activity ratio (AR) was determined in 47 samples of variably uraniferous groundwater from the vicinity of a uranium mill near Canon City, Colorado. The results illustrate that uranium isotopes can be used to determine the distribution of uranium contamination in groundwater and to indicate processes such as mixing and chemical precipitation that affect uranium concentrations. HAuthorsR. A. Zielinski, D. T. Chafin, E. R. Banta, B. J. SzaboUraniferous waters of the Arkansas River valley, Colorado, U.S.A.: A function of geology and land use
The effect of local geology and land-use practices on dissolved U was investigated by analysis of surface water and some springs in the Arkansas River valley of southeastern Colorado. Water samples were collected during a 2 week period in April, 1991. The rate of increase of U concentration with distance downriver increased markedly as the river flowed from predominantly undeveloped lands underlaiAuthorsRobert A. Zielinski, Sigrid Asher-Bolinder, A. L. MeierNitrogen isotopes in nitrate from surface water and shallow groundwater at Sixmile Creek, southeastern Colorado
No abstract available.AuthorsCraig A. Johnson, Robert A. Zielinski, Sigrid A. Asher-BolinderUnderstanding our fragile environment; Lessons from geochemical studies
An understanding of our fragile environment can begin with a recognition of the importance of certain elements, commonly called "minerals substances" (such as iron and zinc), in the lives of humans and animals and in the soils that support plants. This recognition is well deserved because these elements are essential for the life or optimum health of an organism. Some elements such as carbon, hydrAuthorsLarry P. Gough, Sigrid Asher-Bolinder, Laurie S. Balistrieri, George N. Breit, Thomas J. Casadevall, James G. Crock, Kimberley I. Cunningham, Joseph S. Duval, James A. Erdman, Barbara M. Erickson, Walter H. Ficklin, Larry L. Jackson, Rama K. Kotra, Joel S. Leventhal, James M. McNeal, William R. Miller, James K. Otton, Douglass E. Owen, Geoffrey S. Plumlee, G. Michael Reimer, Ronald C. Severson, Kathleen S. Smith, Ronald R. Tidball, Robert A. ZielinskiPetrogenesis and geological history of a uranium source rock: a case study in northeastern Washington, U.S.A.
A small (4 km2) drainage basin in northeastern Washington contains highly uraniferous groundwater and highly uraniferous peaty sediments of Holocene age. The U is derived from granitic bedrock that underlies the entire drainage basin and that contains 9–16 ppm U. This local bedrock was studied by petrographic, chemical and isotopic methods to determine conditions of its petrogenesis and post-emplaAuthorsR. A. Zielinski, R. C. BurrussUranium in Holocene valley-fill sediments, and uranium, radon, and helium in waters, Lake Tahoe-Carson Range area, Nevada and California, U.S.A.
Uraniferous Holocene sediments occur in the Carson Range of Nevada and California, U.S.A., between Lake Tahoe and Carson Valley. The hosts for the uranium include peat and interbedded organic-rich sand, silt, and mud that underly valley floors, fens, and marshes along stream valleys between the crest of the range and the edge of Lake Tahoe. The known uranium accumulations extend along the Carson RAuthorsJ. K. Otton, R. A. Zielinski, J. M. BeenThe aqueous geochemistry of uranium in a drainage containing uraniferous organic-rich sediments, Lake Tahoe area, Nevada, USA
Anomalously uraniferous waters occur in a small (4.2 km2) drainage in the west-central Carson Range, Nevada, on the eastern side of Lake Tahoe. The waters transport uranium from local U-rich soils and bedrock to organic-rich valley-fill sediments where it is concentrated, but weakly bound. The dissolved U and the U that is potentially available from coexisting sediments pose a threat to the qualitAuthorsR. A. Zielinski, J. K. Otton, R. B. Wanty, C. T. PiersonThe association of uranium with organic matter in Holocene peat: An experimental leaching study
Uraniferous peat was sampled from surface layers of a Holocene U deposit in northeastern Washington State. Dried, sized, and homogenized peat that contained5980 ±307 ppm U was subjected to a variety of leaching conditions to determine the nature and strength of U-organic bonding in recently accumulated organic matter. The results complement previous experimental studies of U uptake on peat and sugAuthorsR. A. Zielinski, A. L. Meier