Earth Sciences Division Research Summaries 2002-2003

Technical Report · Sat Nov 01 00:00:00 EST 2003

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/834268· OSTI ID:834268

Bodvarsson, G S

Research in earth and atmospheric sciences is becoming increasingly important in light of the energy, climate change, and environmental issues facing the United States and the world. The development of new energy resources other than hydrocarbons and the safe disposal of nuclear waste and greenhouse gases (such as carbon dioxide and methane) are critical to the future energy needs and environmental safety of this planet. In addition, the cleanup of many contaminated sites in the U.S., along with the preservation and management of our water supply, remain key challenges for us as well as future generations. Addressing these energy, climate change, and environmental issues requires the timely integration of earth sciences' disciplines (such as geology, hydrology, oceanography, climatology, geophysics, geochemistry, geomechanics, ecology, and environmental sciences). This integration will involve focusing on fundamental crosscutting concerns that are common to many of these issues. A primary focus will be the characterization, imaging, and manipulation of fluids in the earth. Such capabilities are critical to many DOE applications, from environmental restoration to energy extraction and optimization. The Earth Sciences Division (ESD) of the Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) is currently addressing many of the key technical issues described above. In this document, we present summaries of many of our current research projects. While it is not a complete accounting, it is representative of the nature and breadth of our research effort. We are proud of our scientific efforts, and we hope that you will find our research useful and exciting. Any comments on our research are appreciated and can be sent to me personally. This report is divided into five sections that correspond to the major research programs in the Earth Sciences Division: (1) Fundamental and Exploratory Research; (2) Nuclear Waste; (3) Energy Resources; (4) Environmental Remediation Technology; and (5) Climate Variability and Carbon Management. These programs draw from each of ESD's disciplinary departments: Microbial Ecology and Environmental Engineering, Geophysics and Geomechanics, Geochemistry, and Hydrogeology and Reservoir Dynamics. Short descriptions of these departments are provided as introductory material. A list of publications for the period from January 2002 to June 2003, along with a listing of our personnel, are appended to the end of this report.

• Research Organization: Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Director, Office of Science (US)
• DOE Contract Number: AC03-76SF00098
• OSTI ID: 834268
• Report Number(s): LBNL-53859; R&D Project: 465119; TRN: US0407088
• Resource Relation: Other Information: PBD: 1 Nov 2003
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

03 NATURAL GAS
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE WASTES, AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
CARBON DIOXIDE
CLIMATES
ECOLOGY
ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING
GEOCHEMISTRY
GEOLOGY
GEOPHYSICS
GREENHOUSE GASES
HYDROCARBONS
HYDROLOGY
METHANE
OCEANOGRAPHY
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
RESEARCH PROGRAMS
WATER SUPPLY
RESEARCH SUMMARIES EARTH ENVIRONMENT HYDROGEOLOGY HYDROLOGY RESEROIR GEOPHYSICS GEOMECHANICS GEOCHEMISTRY MICROBIAL ECOLOGY ENGINEERING NUCLEAR WASTE ENERGY RESOURCES REMEDIATION TECHNOLOGY FUNDAMENTAL EXPLORATORY CLIMATE CARBON