A characterization of baseline groundwater quality in the New York Southern Tier for Project SWIFT

The acquisition of quality baseline groundwater quality in the Southern Tier of New York State has been of concern due to the contention surrounding groundwater quality in areas where hydraulic fracturing for natural gas production has been developed. Little information on groundwater quality is publicly available for the Southern Tier, where natural gas production through hydraulic fracturing is feasible. This Capstone study, as a part of Project SWIFT at Syracuse University, seeks to determine the concentrations of several ionic compounds and elements in the groundwater of the New York counties which are most apt for hydraulic fracturing. Sample sites were determined by adherence to several criteria based on well construction as well as regularly spaced sample distribution throughout the study area. Streams were also sampled, selected according to drainage area. Results showed that groundwater contained higher concentrations of the majority of the compounds analyzed. Only a small number of samples yielded concentrations greater than the Maximum Contaminant Level set by the Environmental Protection Agency. This data will be used to help develop geochemical fingerprinting tool to detect the presence of hydraulic fracturing fluids and associated formation waters in shallow groundwater wells, as goaled by Project SWIFT

Hydroclimatic Conditions Associated with Rapid Flooding in Watersheds of the New York City Water Supply System

The New York City Water Supply System, partially sourced in the Catskill Mountains, NY, is an interconnected series of reservoirs, managed lakes, and aqueducts that serve a population of over 9 million residents in the New York City metropolitan area. This water supply system is unfiltered, as constructing and operating a water filtration facility to support this volume of water would be prohibitively expensive. Because of the unfiltered status, the water supply system is particularly vulnerable to changes in water quality. One such change may occur with flash flooding, which rapidly increases the turbidity of the water and decreases its quality beyond what is allowed in the water supply system. This thesis seeks to understand flash flooding in these watersheds. In Objective 1, USGS 15-minute discharge data from two similar and adjacent watersheds were analyzed for flash floods from 1987-2014. A total of 32 flash flood peaks were detected in the two watersheds over 23 days. These flash flood events were related to hydrometeorological conditions. In Objective 2, unique synoptic-scale patterns (“synoptic types”) were developed with NCEP/NCAR 500 mb geopotential height analyses data. When these 17 types were associated with flash flood events, a statistically significant relationship between types of a southwesterly flow was observed. This pressure gradient occurred significantly more frequently than normal in the days preceding flash floods. Another type, associated with an approaching ridge, was observed significantly less than normal in the days preceding flash flood events. In Objective 3, a relationship between basic hydrometeorological variables and flash flood peak discharge was sought. Regression analyses showed that antecedent soil moisture and precipitation intensity over the 24 hours preceding the flash flood peak explained 42% of the variance in the peak discharge. The novelty of this research largely lies with the synthesis of both synoptic scales and local scales in regard to understanding flash flood occurrence and magnitude in the Catskill Mountains, NY. The conclusions of this thesis provide information that could be utilized by watershed managers to improve understanding of flash floods in this water supply system. Direction and suggestions for future work are also provided

The intramolecular beta-fluorine...ammonium interaction in 4- and 8-membered rings

The structures of 3-fluoroazetidinium hydrochloride and 3-fluoro-1,5-diazacyclooctane hydrobromide are explored both by X-ray diffraction analysis and DFT calculations, and the conformations of these molecules are shown to be significantly influenced by the through space C-F center dot center dot center dot N+ interaction.</p

The intramolecular beta-fluorine...ammonium interaction in 4- and 8-membered rings

The structures of 3-fluoroazetidinium hydrochloride and 3-fluoro-1,5-diazacyclooctane hydrobromide are explored both by X-ray diffraction analysis and DFT calculations, and the conformations of these molecules are shown to be significantly influenced by the through space C-F center dot center dot center dot N+ interaction.</p

Using Discriminant Analysis to Determine Sources of Salinity in Shallow Groundwater Prior to Hydraulic Fracturing

High-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF) gas-drilling operations in the Marcellus Play have raised environmental concerns, including the risk of groundwater contamination. Fingerprinting water impacted by gas-drilling operations is not trivial given other potential sources of contamination. We present a multivariate statistical modeling framework for developing a quantitative, geochemical fingerprinting tool to distinguish sources of high salinity in shallow groundwater. The model was developed using new geochemical data for 204 wells in New York State (NYS), which has a HVHF moratorium and published data for additional wells in NYS and several salinity sources (Appalachian Basin brines, road salt, septic effluent, and animal waste). The model incorporates a stochastic simulation to predict the geochemistry of high salinity (>20 mg/L Cl) groundwater impacted by different salinity sources and then employs linear discriminant analysis to classify samples from different populations. Model results indicate Appalachian Basin brines are the primary source of salinity in 35% of sampled NYS groundwater wells with >20 mg/L Cl. The model provides an effective means for differentiating groundwater impacted by basin brines versus other contaminants. Using this framework, similar discriminatory tools can be derived for other regions from background water quality data

Using Discriminant Analysis to Determine Sources of Salinity in Shallow Groundwater Prior to Hydraulic Fracturing

High-volume hydraulic fracturing (HVHF) gas-drilling operations in the Marcellus Play have raised environmental concerns, including the risk of groundwater contamination. Fingerprinting water impacted by gas-drilling operations is not trivial given other potential sources of contamination. We present a multivariate statistical modeling framework for developing a quantitative, geochemical fingerprinting tool to distinguish sources of high salinity in shallow groundwater. The model was developed using new geochemical data for 204 wells in New York State (NYS), which has a HVHF moratorium and published data for additional wells in NYS and several salinity sources (Appalachian Basin brines, road salt, septic effluent, and animal waste). The model incorporates a stochastic simulation to predict the geochemistry of high salinity (>20 mg/L Cl) groundwater impacted by different salinity sources and then employs linear discriminant analysis to classify samples from different populations. Model results indicate Appalachian Basin brines are the primary source of salinity in 35% of sampled NYS groundwater wells with >20 mg/L Cl. The model provides an effective means for differentiating groundwater impacted by basin brines versus other contaminants. Using this framework, similar discriminatory tools can be derived for other regions from background water quality data