Course Description
Use of environmental tracers to study water flow, contamination, and transport. Covers isotopic and chemical techniques, dating methods, and data integration. Emphasizes interdisciplinary applications, ethical considerations, and proposal development. Students engage in case studies and research projects to advance hydrological understanding and problem-solving.
Athena Title
Rates and Dates
Prerequisite
MATH 2200 or MATH 2250 or MATH 2250E or STAT 2000 or STAT 2000E or STAT 2010 or STAT 3110 or STAT 3110E or FANR 2010-2010L or BIOS 2010 or BIOS 2010E or PHYS 1010 or PHYS 1111-1111L or PHYS 1211-1211L or PHYS 1311-1311L
Semester Course Offered
Offered fall
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Student Learning Outcomes
- Students will be able to critically analyze environmental tracer methodologies and apply appropriate tracer techniques to evaluate hydrological processes in case studies.
- Students will be able to evaluate complex hydrologic contamination or flow scenarios and synthesize interdisciplinary data to propose tracer-informed solutions.
- Students will be able to design and present a research proposal aligned with academic standards, demonstrating clear articulation of research questions, methodologies, and anticipated outcomes.
Topical Outline
- A. Introduction to environmental tracers
- 1. Overview of tracer applications in subsurface hydrology
- 2. Historical developments and key studies
- B. Fundamental principles of tracer techniques
- 1. Properties and classifications of environmental tracers
- 2. Principles of isotope fractionation and decay
- 3. Conservative vs. reactive tracers
- C. Tracer techniques for groundwater dating
- 1. Radiometric dating methods (e.g., 14C, 39Ar, 81Kr)
- 2. Tritium/Helium-3 (3H/3He) dating
- 3. Chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) dating
- D. Contaminant source identification and transport mechanisms
- 1. Use of stable isotopes (18O, 2H, 15N) for contamination studies
- 2. Noble gases as tracers of environmental processes
- 3. Case studies: contamination mapping and source history
- E. Advanced techniques and emerging tracers
- 1. Chlorine-36 (36Cl), Sulfur-35 (35S), Silicon-32 (32Si)
- 2. Applications of radiogenic helium (4He) in subsurface hydrology
- 3. Recent developments in tracer technologies and methodologies
- F. Integrated studies and data synthesis
- 1. Combining isotopic and chemical tracers for hydrological models
- 2. Multidisciplinary approaches to interpreting tracer data
- 3. Addressing uncertainties and limitations in tracer studies
- G. Research proposal development
- 1. Guidelines for writing scientific proposals
- 2. Structuring research objectives and methodology
- 3. Peer review and presentation of research proposals
- H. Practical challenges
- 1. Sampling techniques and data integrity
