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The use of isotopes and environmental tracers in subsurface hydrology
Author(s) -
Phillips Fred M.
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
reviews of geophysics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 8.087
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1944-9208
pISSN - 8755-1209
DOI - 10.1029/95rg00247
Subject(s) - groundwater recharge , aquifer , hydrology (agriculture) , groundwater , geology , environmental science , tracer , environmental isotopes , isotope , earth science , physics , geotechnical engineering , nuclear physics
The term “isotope hydrology” is, perhaps, unfortunate. It refers to the application of techniques that measure isotopic abundances (i.e., relative numbers of atoms of an element having different numbers of neutrons in the nucleus) to problems in hydrology. However, “isotopic” techniques can be applied to a very wide range of hydrological problems. For example, isotopic abundances may be used as conservative tracers for transport by flowing groundwater, for estimating amounts of materials going from one phase of a system to another, for determining extents of chemical reactions in the subsurface, for identifying recharge areas of aquifers, or for estimating subsurface residence times. In general, neither the analytical techniques used nor the physical processes involved have much in common from application to application. Instead, the common thread throughout the field is a basic application of simple nuclear physics and a generally understood (within the specialty) jargon and notation.