John A. Cherry

Bio: John A. Cherry is an academic researcher from University of Guelph. The author has contributed to research in topics: Aquifer & Groundwater. The author has an hindex of 71, co-authored 234 publications receiving 15792 citations. Previous affiliations of John A. Cherry include University of Arizona & University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign.

Groundwater contamination: pump-and-treat remediation

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to explore reasons for the observed difficulty of groundswater cleanup and note some implications that become clear during this process. Tthe discussion is limited to organic contaminants because they are the most health-threatening chemicals detected in groundwater and because the greatest difficulties in groundwater remediation have been encountered at organic contamination sites.

A natural gradient experiment on solute transport in a sand aquifer: 1. Approach and overview of plume movement

Abstract: A large-scale field experiment on natural gradient transport of solutes in groundwater has been conducted at a site in Borden, Ontario. Well-defined initial conditions were achieved by the pulse injection of 12 m3 of a uniform solution containing known masses of two inorganic tracers (chloride and bromide) and five halogenated organic chemicals (bromoform, carbon tetrachloride, tetrachloroethylene, 1,2-dichlorobenzene, and hexachloroethane). A dense, three-dimensional array of over 5000 sampling points was installed throughout the zone traversed by the solutes. Over 19,900 samples have been collected over a 3-year period. The tracers followed a linear horizontal trajectory at an approximately constant velocity, both of which compare well with expectations based on water table contours and estimates of hydraulic head gradient, porosity, and hydraulic conductivity. The vertical displacement over the duration of the experiment was small. Spreading was much more pronounced in the horizontal longitudinal than in the horizontal transverse direction; vertical spreading was very small. The organic solutes were retarded in mobility, as expected.

Stable Isotopes of Oxygen and Nitrogen in Source Identification of Nitrate from Septic Systems

Abstract: Stable isotopes, 15N and 18O, have been used as tracers to differentiate a contaminant nitrate plume emanating from a single domestic septic system, in a ground-water system characterized by high and similar nitrate content outside and inside of the contaminant plume. A good delineation of the nitrate plume of septic origin was obtained using 15 N analysis in nitrate. The 15N content ofthe nonplunie nitrate is in agreement with the sources of nitrate: solid cattle manure, synthetic fertilizer (NH4-NO3), and soil organic nitrogen, at the study site. 18O analysis in nitrate did not provide enough isotopic contrast to permit separation of nitrate derived from the septic system and that in the surrounding ground water, derived from agricultural fertilizer sources. 18O data indicated that nitrification of ammonium is the main process responsible for formation of nitrate at the study site. 18O in ground water clearly delineated the ground-water plume associated with the septic system and suggest that this tracer should be considered in studies related with contaminant plumes of different origin.

A Field Exercise on Groundwater Flow Using Seepage Meters and Mini-piezometers

Abstract: Basic principles of physical hydrogeology and the nature of the hydrologic interactions between groundwater and surface water can be convincingly demonstrated in the field using two inexpensive and...

Mechanisms of Slow Sorption of Organic Chemicals to Natural Particles

Abstract: The use of equilibrium expressions for sorption to natural particles in fate and transport models is often invalid due to slow kinetics. This paper reviews recent research into the causes of slow sorption and desorption rates at the intraparticle level and how this phenomenon relates to contaminant transport, bioavailability, and remediation. Sorption kinetics are complex and poorly predictable at present. Diffusion limitations appear to play a major role. Contending mechanisms include diffusion through natural organic matter matrices and diffusion through intraparticle nanopores. These mechanisms probably operate simultaneously, but the relative importance of each in a given system is indeterminate. Sorption shows anomalous behaviors that are presently not well explained by the simple diffusion models, including concentration dependence of the slow fraction, distributed rate constants, and kinetic hysteresis. Research is needed to determine whether adsorption/desorption bond energies may play a role alon...

A Critical Review of Data on Field-Scale Dispersion in Aquifers

Abstract: found that field-scale dispersivities are several orders of.magnitude greater than lab-scale values for the same material; it is generally agreed that this difference is a reflection of the influence of natural heterogeneities which produce irregular flow patterns at the field scale. Consequently, laboratory measurements of dispersivity cannot be used to predict field values of dispersivity. Instead field-scale tracer tests are sometimes conducted to estimate dispersivity at a particular site. Early efforts to document the scale dependence of dispersivity [Lallemand-Barres and Peaudecerf, 1978; Anderson, 1979; Pickens and Grisak, 1981; Beims, 1983; Neretnieks, 1985] were based on field values of dispersivity reported in the literature and the test scales associated with those values. These studies were useful in that they indeed documented field evidence of the scale effect, but they were lacking in that they did not assess the reliability of the data presented. Because we felt that the data would be more