Metal Concentrations in an Antarctic Permeable Reactive Barrier

Field solution metal concentrations were measured during the operation of a permeable reactive barrier at Casey Station, Antarctica. The dataset includes results from certified reference materials and field samples collected over the 2012/13 and 2013/14 summer seasons. It was produced by the Australian Antarctic Division and published in January 2014.

Use Cases

• Analyze temporal trends in specific metal concentrations (e.g., iron, arsenic) from multiport samples to assess barrier performance over two summer seasons.
• Correlate pH, Eh, and EC readings from unfiltered samples with filtered metal concentration data to understand geochemical conditions influencing remediation.
• Validate analytical methods by comparing field sample results against certified reference material results from the 2013/14 analysis.
• Model contaminant plume behavior by examining concentration gradients across the barrier's upgradient to downstream sampling ports.

Strengths

• Data covers two consecutive summer field seasons (2012/13 and 2013/14) with six sampling events per season.
• Analysis performed using inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) with documented internal standard (yttrium) and matrix modifier procedures.
• Samples were collected from a defined structure (five cage pallets, 1.8m x 1.1m x 0.75m) with a standardized protocol for filtration and preservation.

Limitations

• Sample size is limited to one reactive barrier at a single location (Casey Station), restricting geographic generalizability.
• The dataset's temporal coverage is discontinuous, limited to summer months, missing full annual cycles.
• The exact number of rows, columns, and measured metal species is unspecified in the provided description.

Provenance

Source

Australian Antarctic Division (AU_AADC), via NASA Earthdata.

Collection Method

Field samples were collected from multiport wells in a permeable reactive barrier, filtered, acidified, and analyzed via ICP-OES.

Time Range

2012/13 and 2013/14 summer seasons.

Freshness

Data is from 2014 and is not updated.

Geography

Casey Station Main Powerhouse, Antarctica.