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Geology topics

D.R. LeBlanc

Publications and source records attributed to D.R. LeBlanc.

14 recordsLinked to original sources
USGS2009

Monitoring the removal of phosphate from ground water discharging through a pond-bottom permeable reactive barrier

Installation of a permeable reactive barrier to intercept a phosphate (PO 4 ) plume where it discharges to a pond provided an opportunity to develop and test methods for monitoring the barrier’s performance in the shallow pond‐bottom sediments. The barrier is composed of zero‐valent‐iron mixed with the native sediments to a 0.6‐m depth over a 1100‐m 2 area. Permanent suction, diffusion, and seepage samplers were installed to monitor PO 4 and other chemical species along vertical transects through the barrier and horizontal transects below and near the top of the barrier. Analysis of pore water sampled at about 3‐cm vertical intervals by using multilevel diffusion and suction samplers indicated steep decreases in PO 4 concentrations in ground water flowing upward through the barrier. Samples from vertically aligned pairs of horizontal multiport suction samplers also indicated substantial decreases in PO 4 concentrations and lateral shifts in the plume’s discharge area as a result of varying pond stage. Measurements from Lee‐style seepage meters indicated substantially decreased PO 4 concentrations in discharging ground water in the treated area; temporal trends in water flux were related to pond stage. The advantages and limitations of each sampling device are described. Preliminary analysis of the first 2 years of data indicates that the barrier reduced PO 4 flux by as much as 95%.

Ground Water Monitoring and Remediation↗
USGS2008

Subsurface fate and transport of sulfamethoxazole, 4-nonylphenol, and 17β-estradiol

Subsurface fate and transport of the antibiotic sulfamethoxazole (SX), the non-ionic surfactant degradation product 4-nonylphenol (NP), and the sex hormone 17β-estradiol (E2) were evaluated in a plume of contaminated groundwater at Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA. The plume is the result of 60 years of wastewater treatment plant effluent disposal into rapid infiltration beds. Natural-gradient, in situ tracer experiments were used to evaluate subsurface transport of SX, NP, and E2 (injected at 300, 530, and 0.55 µg/L, respectively) relative to the conservative tracer bromide. Two geochemical zones were evaluated: (1) uncontaminated groundwater overlying the plume, and (2) contaminated groundwater within the plume that has recently become oxic after decades of anoxic conditions. The uncontaminated groundwater is characterized by a microbial community unacclimated to treated wastewater, whereas the contaminated groundwater is characterized by microbes acclimated to wastewater contaminants. Results from the tracer tests in both zones showed that the antibiotic SX was co-transported with the conservative tracer bromide, with little retardation or mass removal. In contrast, NP and E2, which are more hydrophobic and biodegradable, showed sorption (relative retardation factors ranged up to 5.9) and mass loss at both the uncontaminated and contaminated sites.

Conference Paper↗
USGS2006

Analysis of steady-state salt-water upconing with application at Truro well field, Cape Cod, Massachusetts

Salt-water upconing describes the phenomenon where salt water is transported vertically upward under a well in response to pumpage in a fresh-water aquifer underlain by salt water. Sharp interface methods have been used successfully to describe the physics of upconing. A finite-element model is developed to simulate a sharp interface for determination of the steady-state position of the interface and maximum permissible well discharges. The model developed is compared to previous published electric-analog model results of Bennett and others (1968). Both methods are applied to a test case at Truro, Massachusetts, where maximum permissible discharges are determined by the finite-element model to range from 0.47 to 1.05 cubic feet per second for the Test Site No. 4 location.

Groundwater↗
USGS2006

Long-term natural attenuation of carbon and nitrogen within a groundwater plume after removal of the treated wastewater source

Disposal of treated wastewater for more than 60 years onto infiltration beds on Cape Cod, Massachusetts produced a groundwater contaminant plume greater than 6 km long in a surficial sand and gravel aquifer. In December 1995 the wastewater disposal ceased. A long-term, continuous study was conducted to characterize the post-cessation attenuation of the plume from the source to 0.6 km downgradient. Concentrations and total pools of mobile constituents, such as boron and nitrate, steadily decreased within 1-4 years along the transect. Dissolved organic carbon loads also decreased, but to a lesser extent, particularly downgradient of the infiltration beds. After 4 years, concentrations and pools of carbon and nitrogen in groundwater were relatively constant with time and distance, but substantially elevated above background. The contaminant plume core remained anoxic for the entire 10-year study period; temporal patterns of integrated oxygen deficit decreased slowly at all sites. In 2004, substantial amounts of total dissolved carbon (7 mol C m-2) and fixed (dissolved plus sorbed) inorganic nitrogen (0.5 mol N m-2) were still present in a 28-m vertical interval at the disposal site. Sorbed constituents have contributed substantially to the dissolved carbon and nitrogen pools and are responsible for the long-term persistence of the contaminant plume. Natural aquifer restoration at the discharge location will take at least several decades, even though groundwater flow rates and the potential for contaminant flushing are relatively high.

Environmental Science & Technology↗
USGS2005

Experimental evaluation of factors affecting temporal variability of water samples obtained from long-screened wells

As a well is pumped through time, concentrations of specific constituents in the water discharging from the well may change as a result of their transport within the well and the aquifer. A series of experiments conducted at a research site on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, examined the effects of transport on the chemistry of water samples obtained from a long-screened well. Analyses of time series of constituent concentrations in water pumped from the long-screened well showed persistent temporal trends during the first experiment. Iron concentrations decreased over a five-hour test (15 casing volumes), whereas the calcium and magnesium concentrations increased. In contrast, the time series of constituent concentrations of water discharging from the same well showed less change with time during a later experiment. Numerical simulations were undertaken to test the relative importance of several possible factors affecting the temporal variations of these constituents. During the process of quantitatively explaining the changes in concentrations over time observed in the two experiments, different system conceptualizations were used, including (1) flow and transport in the aquifer without wellbore transport, (2) flow and transport in the aquifer with advective flow and transport in the wellbore, and (3) flow and transport in the aquifer with advective flow and transport in the wellbore and a thin layer (skin) of water surrounding the well with constituent concentrations that had been altered by the presence of the well. The conjectured skin of wellbore water, which could have invaded the aquifer because of nearby sampling or dispersion and diffusion near the wellbore, in conjunction with flow and transport in the aquifer and advective transport within the wellbore, produced a reasonable match between the simulated and observed concentrations. The data analysis confirms the known fact that long-screened wells provide mechanisms for the redistribution of chemical constituents in the aquifer. The analysis provides new insight into the mechanisms responsible for the observed changes in concentrations during the sampling of long-screened wells. The analysis quantifies the effects of the various conceptual models of flow and transport in and around wells on the interpretation and meaning of chemical analyses of water withdrawn from long-screened wells.A series of experiments was conducted at a research site on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, to examine the effects of transport on the chemistry of water samples obtained from a long-screened well. A time-series analysis of the constituents concentration in pumped water revealed a persistent temporal trend during the first experiment. Iron concentrations decreased over a five-hour test, while calcium and magnesium concentrations increased. Numerical simulations were undertaken to test the relative importance of several possible factors affecting the temporal variations of the constituents to quantify the effects of the various conceptual models of flow and transport in and around the wells.

Ground Water↗
USGS2005

Transient Analysis of the Source of Water to Wells: Cape Cod, Massachusetts

A transient flow modeling analysis for potential public-supply wells on western Cape Cod, Massachusetts, demonstrates the difference between transient and steady-state recharge areas can have important implications for wellhead protection. An example of a single pumping well illustrates that commonly, used steady-state time-related capture areas do not represent the recharge area and travel times of water being pumped from the well until sufficient time has elapsed for steady-state flow conditions to be established. Until that time, transient recharge areas are needed to account for the portion of water discharging from the well that entered the aquifer before pumping started. An example of two pumping wells demonstrates the same area at the water table cannot supply water to more than one well under steady-state flow conditions. Transient recharge areas to multiple wells can overlap, however, until steady-state flow conditions are established. The same area can, therefore, be a source of water to more than one well during early pumping times, and the water pumped from a given well may derive from source areas, including contaminated areas, that do not lie within the well's steady-state recharge area.

Cape Cod↗
USGS2002

Transport of microspheres and indigenous bacteria through a sandy aquifer: Results of natural- and forced-gradient tracer experiments

Transport of indigenous bacteria through sandy aquifer sediments was investigated in forced- and natural-gradient tracer teste. A diverse population of bacteria was collected and concentrated from groundwater at the site, stained with a DNA-specific fluorochrome, and injected back into the aquifer. Included with the injectate were a conservative tracer (Br- or Cl-) and bacteria-sized (0.2-1.3-??m) microspheres having carboxylated, carbonyl, or neutral surfaces. Transport of stained bacteria and all types and size classes of microspheres was evident. In the natural-gradient test, both surface characteristics and size of microspheres affected attenuation. Surface characteristics had the greatest effect upon retardation. Peak break-through of DAPI-stained bacteria (forced-gradient experiment) occurred well in advance of bromide at the more distal sampler. Transport behavior of bacteria was substantially different from that of carboxylated microspheres of comparable size.

Environmental Science & Technology↗
USGS2000

Modeling the influence of variable pH on the transport of zinc in a contaminated aquifer using semiempirical surface complexation models

Land disposal of sewage effluent resulted in contamination of a sand and gravel aquifer (Cape Cod, Massachusetts) with zinc (Zn). The distribution of Zn was controlled by pH‐dependent adsorption; the Zn extended 15 m into the 30‐m‐thick sewage plume within approximately 100 m of the source but only 2–4 m into the plume between 100 and 400 m downgradient. A two‐dimensional vertical cross section model coupling groundwater flow with solute transport and equilibrium adsorption is used to simulate the influence of pH on Zn transport. Adsorption is described using semiempirical surface complexation models (SCM) by writing chemical reactions between dissolved Zn and mineral surface sites. SCM parameters were determined in independent laboratory experiments. A 59‐year simulation with a one‐site SCM describes the influence of pH on Zn transport well, with greater mobility at the low pH values near the upper sewage plume boundary than at the higher pH values deeper in the sewage‐contaminated zone. Simulation with a two‐site SCM describes both the sharpness and approximate location of the leading edge of the Zn‐contaminated region. Temporal variations in pH of incoming groundwater can result in large increases in Zn concentration and mobility. The influence of spatial and temporal variability in pH on adsorption and transport of Zn was accomplished much more easily with the semiempirical SCM approach than could be achieved with distribution coefficients or adsorption isotherms.

Water Resources Research↗
USGS2000

Delineation of discharge areas of two contaminant plumes by use of diffusion samplers, Johns Pond, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, 1998

Diffusion samplers were installed in the bottom of Johns Pond, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, to confirm that volatile organic compounds from the Storm Drain-5 (SD-5) plume emanating from the Massachusetts Military Reservation (MMR) were discharging into the pond. An array of 134 vapor-diffusion samplers was buried by divers about 0.5 feet below the pond bottom in the presumed discharge area of the SD-5 plume and left in place for about 2 weeks to equilibrate. Two areas of high concentrations of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were identified. Samples from the first area contained trichloroethene (TCE) and tetrachloroethene with concentrations in vapor as high as 890 and 667 parts per billion by volume, respectively. This discharge area is about 1,000 feet wide, extends from 100 to 350 feet offshore, and is interpreted to be the discharge area of the SD-5 plume. Samples from the second area were located closer to shore than the discharge area of the SD-5 plume and contained unexpectedly high vapor concentrations of TCE (more than 40,000 parts per billion by volume). Ground-water samples collected with a drive-point sampler near the second area had aqueous TCE concentrations as high as 1,100 micrograms per liter. Subsequently, a more closely spaced array of 110 vapor-diffusion samplers was installed to map the area of elevated TCE concentrations . The discharge area detected with the samplers is about 75 feet wide and extends from about 25 to 200 feet offshore . TCE vapor concentrations in this area were as high as 42,800 parts per billion by volume. TCE concentrations in micrograms per liter in water-diffusion samples from 15 selected sites in the two discharge areas were about 35 times lower than the TCE concentrations in parts per billion by volume in corresponding vapor-diffusion samples. The difference in values is due to the volatile nature of TCE and the different units of measure. TCE was detected in diffusion samplers set in the pond water column above the plume discharge areas, but the TCE concentrations were 20 to 30 times lower than the corresponding levels in diffusion samplers buried in the pond bottom.

Massachusetts↗
USGS1998

Simulation of variable-density flow and transport of reactive and nonreactive solutes during a tracer test at Cape Cod, Massachusetts

A multispecies numerical code was developed to simulate flow and mass transport with kinetic adsorption in variable-density flow systems. The two-dimensional code simulated the transport of bromide (Br − ), a nonreactive tracer, and lithium (Li + ), a reactive tracer, in a large-scale tracer test performed in a sand-and-gravel aquifer at Cape Cod, Massachusetts. A two-fraction kinetic adsorption model was implemented to simulate the interaction of Li + with the aquifer solids. Initial estimates for some of the transport parameters were obtained from a nonlinear least squares curve-fitting procedure, where the breakthrough curves from column experiments were matched with one-dimensional theoretical models. The numerical code successfully simulated the basic characteristics of the two plumes in the tracer test. At early times the centers of mass of Br − and Li + sank because the two plumes were closely coupled to the density-driven velocity field. At later times the rate of downward movement in the Br − plume due to gravity slowed significantly because of dilution by dispersion. The downward movement of the Li + plume was negligible because the two plumes moved in locally different velocity regimes, where Li + transport was retarded relative to Br − . The maximum extent of downward transport of the Li + plume was less than that of the Br − plume. This study also found that at early times the downward movement of a plume created by a three-dimensional source could be much more extensive than the case with a two-dimensional source having the same cross-sectional area. The observed shape of the Br − plume at Cape Cod was simulated by adding two layers with different hydraulic conductivities at shallow depth across the region. The large dispersion and asymmetrical shape of the Li + plume were simulated by including kinetic adsorption-desorption reactions.

Massachusetts↗
USGS1991

Importance of closely spaced vertical sampling in delineating chemical and microbiological gradients in groundwater studies

Vertical gradients of selected chemical constituents, bacterial populations, bacterial activity and electron acceptors were investigated for an unconfined aquifer contaminated with nitrate and organic compounds on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, U.S.A. Fifteen-port multilevel sampling devices (MLS's) were installed within the contaminant plume at the source of the contamination, and at 250 and 2100 m downgradient from the source. Depth profiles of specific conductance and dissolved oxygen at the downgradient sites exhibited vertical gradients that were both steep and inversely related. Narrow zones (2-4 m thick) of high N2O and NH4+ concentrations were also detected within the contaminant plume. A 27-fold change in bacterial abundance; a 35-fold change in frequency of dividing cells (FDC), an indicator of bacterial growth; a 23-fold change in 3H-glucose uptake, a measure of heterotrophic activity; and substantial changes in overall cell morphology were evident within a 9-m vertical interval at 250 m downgradient. The existence of these gradients argues for the need for closely spaced vertical sampling in groundwater studies because small differences in the vertical placement of a well screen can lead to incorrect conclusions about the chemical and microbiological processes within an aquifer.Vertical gradients of selected chemical constituents, bacterial populations, bacterial activity and electron acceptors were investigated for an unconfined aquifer contaminated with nitrate and organic compounds on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, USA. Fifteen-port multilevel sampling devices (MLS's) were installed within the contaminant plume at the source of the contamination, and at 250 and 2100 m downgradient from the source. Depth profiles of specific conductance and dissolved oxygen at the downgradient sites exhibited vertical gradients that were both steep and inversely related. Narrow zones (2-4 m thick) of high N2O and NH4+ concentrations were also detected within the contaminant plume. A 27-fold change in bacterial abundance; a 35-fold change in frequency of dividing cells (FDC), an indicator of bacterial growth; a 23-fold change in 3H-glucose uptake, a measure of heterotrophic activity; and substantial changes in overall cell morphology were evident within a 9-m vertical interval at 250 m downgradient. The existence of these gradients argues for the need for closely spaced vertical sampling in ground-water studies because small differences in the vertical placement of a well screen can lead to incorrect conclusions about the chemical and microbiological processes within an aquifer.

Journal of Contaminant Hydrology↗