Strontium Isotope Study of Coal Utilization By-Products Interacting with Environmental Waters

Spivak-Birndorf, L. J.; Stewart, Brian W.; Capo, Rosemary C.; Chapman, Elizabeth C.; Schroeder, Karl; Brubaker, Tonya M.

doi:10.2134/jeq2011.0222

Cited by 19 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…Se, however, was elevated in both high-and low-SO 4 water types ( Figure 5). Similar to observations in the surface samples, high concentrations of B were not always associated with detectable levels of other CCR-related contaminants, and thus, some wells 17,22,28 The strong linear correlations support migration of water from the coal ash ponds as the source of high B and Sr levels and mixing with regional groundwater.…”

Section: Environmental Science and Technologysupporting

confidence: 69%

Evidence for Coal Ash Ponds Leaking in the Southeastern United States

Harkness

Sulkin²,

Vengosh

2016

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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Coal combustion residuals (CCRs), the largest industrial waste in the United States, are mainly stored in surface impoundments and landfills. Here, we examine the geochemistry of seeps and surface water from seven sites and shallow groundwater from 15 sites in five states (Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia, Virginia, and North Carolina) to evaluate possible leaking from coal ash ponds. The assessment for groundwater impacts at the 14 sites in North Carolina was based on state-archived monitoring well data. Boron and strontium exceeded background values of 100 and 150 μg/L, respectively, at all sites, and the high concentrations were associated with low δ(11)B (-9‰ to +8‰) and radiogenic (87)Sr/(86)Sr (0.7070 to 0.7120) isotopic fingerprints that are characteristic of coal ash at all but one site. Concentrations of CCR contaminants, including SO4, Ca, Mn, Fe, Se, As, Mo, and V above background levels, were also identified at all sites, but contamination levels above drinking water and ecological standards were observed in 10 out of 24 samples of impacted surface water. Out of 165 monitoring wells, 65 were impacted with high B levels and 49 had high CCR-contaminant levels. Distinct isotope fingerprints, combined with elevated levels of CCR tracers, provide strong evidence for the leaking of coal ash ponds to adjacent surface water and shallow groundwater. Given the large number of coal ash impoundments throughout the United States, the systematic evidence for leaking of coal ash ponds shown in this study highlights potential environmental risks from unlined coal ash ponds.

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Section: Environmental Science and Technologysupporting

confidence: 69%

Evidence for Coal Ash Ponds Leaking in the Southeastern United States

Harkness

Sulkin²,

Vengosh

2016

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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“…Pennsylvania (Chapman et al, 2012), as well as leaching of U.S coals (Brubaker et al, 2013;Ruhl et al, 2014;Spivak-Birndorf et al, 2012), had a range of 0.70975 to 0.71910. Both leaching experiments of WV surface rocks and streams that discharged from valley fills in WV found that coal-bearing rocks have 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratio ~0.7124 (Vengosh et al, 2013), which is similar to the values measured in groundwater in this study.…”

Section: Tracing the Source Of The Salinity And Hydrocarbons In Grounmentioning

confidence: 99%

The geochemistry of naturally occurring methane and saline groundwater in an area of unconventional shale gas development

Harkness

Darrah

Warner

et al. 2017

Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta

128

167

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Since naturally occurring methane and saline groundwater are nearly ubiquitous in many sedimentary basins, delineating the effects of anthropogenic contamination sources is a major challenge for evaluating the impact of unconventional shale gas development on water quality. This study investigates the geochemical variations of groundwater and surface water before, during, and after hydraulic fracturing and in relation to various geospatial parameters in an area of shale gas development in northwestern West Virginia, United States. To our knowledge, we are the first to report a broadly integrated study of various geochemical techniques designed to apportion natural and anthropogenic sources of natural gas and salt contaminants both before and after drilling. These measurements include inorganic geochemistry (major cations and anions), stable isotopes of select inorganic constituents including strontium (87 Sr/ 86 Sr), boron (δ 11 B), lithium (δ 7 Li), and carbon (δ 13 C-DIC), select hydrocarbon molecular (methane, ethane, propane, butane, and pentane) and isotopic tracers (δ 13 C-CH 4 , δ 13 CC 2 H 6), tritium (3 H), and noble gas elemental and isotopic composition (He, Ne, Ar) in 112 drinking-water wells, with repeat testing in 33 of the wells (total samples=145). In a subset of wells (n=20), we investigated the variations in water quality before and after the installation of nearby (<1 km) shale-gas wells. Methane occurred above 1 ccSTP/L in 37% of the groundwater samples and in 79% of the samples with elevated salinity (chloride >50 mg/L). The integrated geochemical data indicate that the saline groundwater originated via naturally occurring processes, presumably from the migration of deeper methane-rich brines that have interacted extensively with coal lithologies. These observations were consistent with the lack of changes in water quality observed in drinkingwater wells following the installation of nearby shale-gas wells. In contrast to groundwater samples that showed no evidence of anthropogenic contamination, the chemistry and isotope ratios of surface waters near known spills or leaks occurring at disposal sites (n=8) mimicked the composition of the Marcellus flowback fluids, and show direct evidence for impact on surface water by fluids accidentally released from nearby shale-gas well pads and oil and gas wastewater disposal sites. Overall this study presents a comprehensive geochemical framework that can be

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“…A four-step aqueous sequential extraction procedure (Fig. 2) based on Stewart et al (2001) and Spivak-Birndorf et al (2012) DePaolo et al, 1983).…”

Section: Sequential Extractionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Origin of brines, salts and carbonate from shales of the Marcellus Formation: Evidence from geochemical and Sr isotope study of sequentially extracted fluids

Stewart

Chapman

Capo

et al. 2015

Applied Geochemistry

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Fluids co-produced with methane from hydraulically fractured organic-rich shales of the Marcellus Formation (USA) are characterized by high total dissolved solids (TDS), including elevated levels of Ba, Sr and Br. To investigate the source and geologic history of these high-TDS fluids and their dissolved constituents, we carried out a series of sequential extraction experiments on dry-drilled cuttings extracted within, below and above the Marcellus Shale from a well in Tioga County, New York State. The experiments were designed to extract (1) water soluble components, (2) exchangeable cations, (3) carbonate minerals, and (4) hydrochloric acidsoluble constituents. The geochemistry of the resultant leachates highlights the different geochemical reservoirs for extractable elements within the shale; notably, Na and Br were largely water-soluble, while Ba was extracted primarily from exchangeable sites, and Ca and Sr were found both in exchangeable sites and carbonate. Strontium isotope ratios measured on the leachates indicate that each of the element reservoirs has a distinct value. Measured 87 Sr/ 86 Sr ratios in the water soluble component are similar to those of Marcellus produced water, while the ion exchange reservoir yields lower ratios, and carbonate Sr is lower still, approaching Devonian-Silurian seawater values. Despite the isotopic similarity of water leachates and produced water, the total water chemistry argues against generation of produced water by interaction of hydraulic fracturing fluid with "dry" shale. The high-TDS produced water is most likely trapped formation water (within and/or adjacent to the shale) that is released by hydraulic fracturing. The formation water was affected by multiple processes, possibly including basin scale, tectonically-driven fluid flow. Significant chemical and isotopic differences between Marcellus Shale produced water and overlying Upper Devonian/Lower Mississippian produced waters suggests a hydrologic barrier has been maintained in parts of the Appalachian Basin since the late Paleozoic.

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Strontium Isotope Study of Coal Utilization By-Products Interacting with Environmental Waters

Cited by 19 publications

References 48 publications

Evidence for Coal Ash Ponds Leaking in the Southeastern United States

Evidence for Coal Ash Ponds Leaking in the Southeastern United States

The geochemistry of naturally occurring methane and saline groundwater in an area of unconventional shale gas development

Origin of brines, salts and carbonate from shales of the Marcellus Formation: Evidence from geochemical and Sr isotope study of sequentially extracted fluids

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