Theme 3 - Cross-Cutting Methods and Technologies

Theme goal: Research within this theme is intended to take advantage of new and emerging technologies to obtain data that inform conceptual and quantitative models. We will modify and improve existing and emerging technologies and develop new ones with the goal of understanding biogeochemical, geotechnical and hydrological processes.

Anticipated Outcomes: This research will enhance our knowledge of the mineralogical and microbiological controls on mine water chemistry, particularly the identity and abundance of metal-bearing nm-scale mineral phases in mine waste and the rates and mechanisms of biologically mediated reaction processes. The combined chemical, isotopic, mineralogical, and biological approaches will inform new and improved conceptual models and allow an assessment of scale dependence for important processes; each of these components is critical to decision-making for remediation efforts and for refinement of quantitative models. The continued development of the eddy covariance (ECV) techniques will diminish a major vulnerability for mine waste management by improving accuracy for water-balance measurements.