• Title/Summary/Keyword: oxygen isotopes

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A High-resolution Study of Isotopic Compositions of Precipitation (고해상도 강우동위원소변동에 대한 연구)

  • Lee, Jeonghoon;Kim, Songyi;Han, Yeongcheol;Na, Un-Sung;Oh, Yoon Seok;Kim, Young-Hee;Kim, Hyerin;Ham, Ji-Young;Choi, Hye-Bin;Koh, Dong-Chan
    • Economic and Environmental Geology
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    • v.48 no.5
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    • pp.371-377
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    • 2015
  • Isotopic compositions of precipitation have been used to understand moisture transport in the atmosphere and interactions between precipitation and groundwater. Isotopic compositions of speleothems and ice cores, so called, ''paleoarchives'', can be utilized to interpret climate of the past and global circulation models (GCMs). The GCMs are able to explain the paleoarchives, can be validated by the precipitation isotopes. The developments of stable isotope analyzers make high-resolution isotopic studies feasible. Therefore, a high-resolution study of precipitation isotopes is needed. For this study, precipitation samples were collected for every 5 to 15 minutes, depending on precipitation rates, using an auto-sampler for precipitation isotopes near coastal area. The isotopic compositions of precipitation range from -5.7‰ (-40.1‰) to -10.8‰ (-74.3‰) for oxygen (hydrogen). The slope of ${\delta}^{18}O-{\delta}D$ diagram for the whole period is 6.8, but that of each storm is 5.1, 4.2, 7.9 and 7.7, respectively. It indicates that evaporation occurred during the first two storms, while the latter two storm did not experience any evaporation. The isotopic fractionations of precipitation has significant implications for the water cycle and high-resolution data of precipitation isotopes will be needed for the future studies.

Source identification and Pathway analysis of Nitrate contamintation in "Cultural village", Jeungpyeong

  • 전성천;이강근;배광옥;정형재
    • Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
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    • 2002.04a
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    • pp.254-257
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    • 2002
  • The purposes of this research are to identify the source and to analyze the pathway of nitrate contamination in "cultural village", Jeungpyeong. In order to examine recharge processes and flow pattern that closely related to the influent of nitrate contaminant, the flow field was simulated and the oxygen and hydrogen stable isotopes were analyzed. The nitrogen isotope was used to delineate contaminant sources. The shallow groundwater was mainly composed of precipitation, but leakage of domestic water and sewage contributed to the recharge. Nitrate contaminants were possibly from the leakage of sewage and animal waste. The nitrate concentration decreased due to dilution by low concentration water.ion water.

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Nitrate Contamination of Confined Groundwaters: Application of Nitrogen, Oxygen, and Hydrogen Isotopes (피압대수층 지하수내 질소함유 원인연구: 질소, 산소, 수소동위원소 적용)

  • 추창오;이병대;조병욱;성익환;지세정
    • The Journal of Engineering Geology
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    • v.12 no.3
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    • pp.285-294
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    • 2002
  • The origin of nitrate in confined groundwater was studied using oxygen ($\delta$180), hydrogen ($\delta$D), and nitrogen ($\delta$15N) stable isotopes, along with chemical data of NO3-N. We analyzed groundwaters from more than sixty manufactories producing natural mineral waters around the country During the period of 1998-2001, an average value of nitrate was fair]y low (0.95 mg/$\ell$), however, groundwaters from six sites showed more than 2 mg/$\ell$ of nitrate. The stable isotope data of the groundwaters are -8.3~-11 $\textperthousand$ $\delta$8O, -60~-75 $\textperthousand$ $\delta$D, which lies in an average range of the groundwaters. The nitrogen isotope data with -11.8~-5.1$\textperthousand$ $\delta$15N suggest that manure, organic nitrate, and fertilizers can not be the origin of nitrate in the goundwaters.

Application of Optimum Multiparameter Analysis on Seawater Mixing in the South Sea of Korea Using Ra Isotopes

  • Lee Tongsup;Yang Han-Soeb;Kim Hyang-Bae
    • Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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    • v.3 no.2
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    • pp.143-150
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    • 2000
  • Assuming that summer surface waters in the South Sea (northern East China Sea) are formed mostly by a mixing of three source water (Changjiang Discharge Water; Kuroshio Water and Yellow Sea Surface Water) we apply optimum multiparameter (OMP) analysis to calculate the mixing ratio of each source water to a given surface water. Since OMP requires more parameters than the number of water types (three in this study), we utilize two radium isotopes of dissolved $^{226}Ra\;and\;^{228}Ra$ along with temperature and salinity. Parameter values of each source water are deduced from in situ and historical data. Results with three source of waters on the surface waters are quite promising with less than $1\%$ of unanswered portions. Results not only reproduce the measured temperature and salinity faithfully but also discern the water masses of similar T and S according to their source water mixing. Extending OMP analysis to a whole water column obviously requires more parameters because more source waters are involved in the water mass formation. Original OMP routine utilized dissolved oxygen and nutrients. However, they seem to be perturbed too much by biological activities in the case of shallow waters. We discussed the use of other potential parameters. Also the benefit of parameter substitution is briefly introduced for the future OMP application on shallow waters.

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Observation of Bottom Water Renewal and Export Production in the Japan Basin, East Sea Using Tritium and Helium Isotopes

  • Hahm, Do-Shik;Kim, Kyung-Ryul
    • Ocean Science Journal
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    • v.43 no.1
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    • pp.39-48
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    • 2008
  • Tritium ($^3H$ or T) has been produced mostly by atmospheric nuclear weapon tests, and entered the ocean in the form of water (HTO). As tritium exists as water itself, it has been regarded as an ideal tool to study the transport of water masses. In April 2001 we collected water samples in the western Japan Basin (WJB) for tritium and helium measurement. The timely sampling provided direct evidence of the bottom water formation, resulting in the drastic increase in tritium concentration from 0.3 TU in 2000 to 0.67 TU in 2001. Considering that the new bottom waters were found mostly in the WJB, it implies that maximum 1% of the whole bottom layer below 2600 m should be replaced with the surface water during the severely cold winter 2000 2001. $^3H-^3He$ age, showing the elapsed time since the water left from the surface, can be used to calculate oxygen utilization rate by dividing AOU by the age. Under the condition of 90% oxygen saturation in the surface water, the integration of OUR in the water column below 200 m yields net oxygen consumption of 12 mol $(O_2)m^{-2}yr^{-1}$, which corresponds to the export production of $99\;g\;C\;m^{-2}yr^{-1}$. This estimate is comparable to a previous estimate based on satellite data and implies that the ratio of export to primary production(f-ratio) is as high as 0.5 in the WJB.

A Study on Isotopic Fractionation between Ice and Meltwater by a Melting Experiment (융해실험에 의한 얼음과 융해수의 안정동위원소분화에 관한 연구)

  • Lee, Jeonghoon;Ham, Ji-Young;Hur, Soon Do
    • Ocean and Polar Research
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    • v.37 no.4
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    • pp.327-332
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    • 2015
  • Isotopic compositions of ice and meltwater play a very crucial role in paleoclimate studies based on ice cores and water resources research conducted in alpine hydrogeology. Better understanding of variations in the stable isotopic compositions of water is required since changes from ice to liquid water are gaining more attention due to recent climate change. In this work, a melting experiment was designed and conducted to investigate how the isotopic compositions of ice vary with time by heat sources, such as solar radiation. We conducted the melting experiment for 22 hours. The discharge rate rose to a maximum value after 258 minutes and gradually declined because we fixed the heat source. The isotopic compositions of meltwater increased linearly or to a second degree polynomial. The linear relationship between oxygen and hydrogen has a slope of 6.8, which is less than that of the Global Meteoric Water Line (8) and higher than a theoretical value (6.3). The deuterium excess decreased when ${\delta}D$ or ${\delta}^{18}O$ increases or vise versa since the slope of the relationship for ice-liquid exchange is less than 8. These findings and the apparatus of the melting experiments will make a helpful contribution to the studies of stable isotopes and the melting process in temperate and polar regions.

Temporal and Spatial Variation of Stable Isotopic Compositions of Surface Water and Ground Water in a Small Catchment, Muju, Korea (무주지역 소유역내 지표수와 지하수의 안정동위원소 조성의 시공간적 변화)

  • 한원식;우남칠;이광식;이기철
    • Economic and Environmental Geology
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    • v.36 no.5
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    • pp.329-338
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    • 2003
  • The purpose of this study is to identify the temporal and spatial variation of stable isotopic compositions of surface waters and shallow ground waters at a local watershed(100$Km^2$) near the Muju area. For oxygen and hydrogen isotope analysis, water samples were collected from 19-22 sites during August, October 2001, through April 2002. Seasonal variation in the isotopic compositions of surface waters was clearly shown. However, the degree of such isotopic variation was highly attenuated in shallow ground waters because of mixing with preexisting ground waters. Isotope values of surface waters and ground waters were very similar in each season, indicating that precipitation/ground water/surface water interactions were very active and continuous in the watershed. Stable isotopic ratios of surface waters in the study area were lighter than those of the downstream reach of Geum River on south, indicating “latitude effect”. Both “altitude effect” and “amount effect” were also shown in the stable isotopic ratios of surface waters in the study area as well as seasonal variation of stable isotopes.

Hydrochemical and Isotopic Properties of the Thermal Spring Water from Chonju Jukrim District, Korea (전주 죽림지역 온천수의 화학적 및 동위원소적 특성)

  • Na, Choon-Ki;Lee, Mu-Seong;Lee, In-Sung;Park, Hee-Youl;Kim, Oak-Bae
    • Economic and Environmental Geology
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    • v.30 no.1
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    • pp.25-33
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    • 1997
  • The purpose of this study is to examine the feasibility of using stable isotopes as a hydrologic tracer, and to elucidate the groundwater circulation system and the source of S component dissolved in thermal water of the Chonju Jukrim thermal spring district based on the O, H and S isotopic variabilities of environmental materials including bedrock, rainwater, surface water, shallow subsurface water and thermal spring water. The ${\delta}^{18}O$ and ${\delta}D$ of subsurface waters and surface water show highly restricted range and plotted on the same meteoric water line as a ${\delta}D=8{\delta}^{18}O+19$ line, and derivate from the mean annual isotopic composition of the rain water but are analogous to those of rain waters precipitated during winter season, indicating that ground waters are originated from the meteoric water and are strongly affected by the seasonal variation of air mass. Thermal spring waters are more depleted in ${\delta}^{18}O$ and ${\delta}D$ than those of shallow ground water and surface water. It can be explained by the difference of recharge area. The hydrochemical properties of subsurface waters and surface water devide into two groups: $Ca(HCO_3)_2$ type including shallow subsurface water and surface water, and $Na(HCO_3)$ type of thermal spring waters. The ${\delta}^{34}S$ values of thermal spring water show very high positive and quitely distinct from those of shallow subsurface water and surface water that are similar to those of bed rocks, indicating that sulfate dissolved in thermal spring water has not only a terrigenic origin, but also originates partially from the foreign source containing very heavy ${\delta}^{34}S$ component such as an ancient sea water. However, the presence of $H_2S$ can not be ignore the affact of the isotopic fractionation to explaine the heavy ${\delta}^{34}S$ of thermal spring water. Overall, the Oxygen and Hydrogen stable isotopes can identify the source and the circulation system of the natural waters and the S-isotopes can provide a crucial clue on tracing the dissolved material transports in the circulation system of the natural water.

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Rayleigh Fractionation of Stable Water Isotopes during Equilibrium Freezing (평형 냉동에 의한 물동위원소의 레일리분별)

  • Lee, Jeonghoon;Jung, Hyejung;Nyamgerel, Yalalt
    • Economic and Environmental Geology
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    • v.54 no.1
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    • pp.61-67
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    • 2021
  • Isotopic compositions of snow or ice have been used to reconstruct paleoclimate and to calculate contribution to streamwater using isotopic hydrograph separation as an end member. During freezing and melting of snow or ice, isotopic fractionation occurs between snow or ice and liquid water. Isotopic evolution during melting process has been studied by field, melting experiments and modeling works, but that during freezing has not been well studied. In this review, isotopic fractionation during equilibrium freezing is discussed using the linear relationship between two stable water isotopes (oxygen and hydrogen) and the Rayleigh fractionation. Snow, evaporated from nearby ocean and condensated, follows the Global Meteoric Water Line (slope of 8), but the melting and freezing of snow affect the linear relationship (slope of 19.5/3.1~6.3). The isotopic evolution of liquid water by freezing observed in the open system during Rayleigh fractionation is also seen in the closed system. The isotopic evolution of snow or ice in the open system where the snow or ice is continuously removed becomes more enriched than the residual liquid water by the fractionation factor. The isotopic evolution of snow or ice in the closed system eventually equals the original isotopic compositions of liquid water. It is expected the understanding of isotopic evolution of snow or ice by freezing to increase the accuracy of the paleoclimate studies and hydrograph separation.