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Procedures for Sampling Deep Subsurface Microbial Communities in Unconsolidated Sediments
Author(s) -
Russell Brent F.,
Phelps Tommy J.,
Griffin William T.,
Sargent Kenneth A.
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
groundwater monitoring and remediation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 47
eISSN - 1745-6592
pISSN - 1069-3629
DOI - 10.1111/j.1745-6592.1992.tb00414.x
Subject(s) - coring , environmental science , sediment , contamination , drilling , sampling (signal processing) , drilling fluid , environmental chemistry , petroleum engineering , geology , engineering , ecology , chemistry , mechanical engineering , paleontology , electrical engineering , filter (signal processing) , biology
A corehole sampling project utilizing a wireline coring system provided sediment samples for microbiological characterization from deep unconsolidated sediments. Sampling tools were developed or modified to minimize contamination during sample acquisition and to facilitate stringent decontamination requirements. Quality assurance procedures, including the use of tracers, were implemented to minimize and quantify contamination from drilling hardware, drilling fluids and sample processing. Tracers included microspheres, potassium bromide, rhodamine dye, and perfluorocarbons, which enabled the detection and measurement of 1mg of drilling fluid per kg of sediment. In addition, sample processing was performed on‐site in an anaerobic chamber to prevent exposure of the subsurface materials to atmospheric oxygen concentrations. Sediment samples were then disbursed to investigators at National Laboratories and universities funded through the Department of Energy Subsurface Science Microbiology Program for microbiological characterization. Results of these efforts demonstrated that representative subsurface samples were collected and disbursed.