David Vinson

Funded graduate research opportunity to begin January or August 2018 – Stream restoration and water quality

I examine the processes that control element occurrence in natural and human-modified waters, with applications to energy resources, water quality, and groundwater sustainability. Environments of interest range from urban streams to deep saline groundwater. As tools, I use natural elements and isotope fingerprints to trace water-rock interaction, biogeochemical processing, mixing, and movement. These tools are combined with physical hydrologic data and in some cases microbiology to address a range of interdisciplinary problems. At UNC Charlotte, I teach courses in earth science, hydrology, hydrogeology, and geochemistry.

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Education

• Ph.D (2011) Duke University – Earth & Ocean Sciences
• M.S. (2002) University of New Mexico – Earth & Planetary Sciences
• B.S. (2000) University of Alabama – Geology / American Studies

Research & Teaching Interests

• Groundwater-surface water interactions
• Water-rock interaction in aquifers
• Environmental & energy geochemistry

Current Research Directions & Opportunities

Urban groundwater-surface water interactions

• Groundwater-surface water interactions with urban and pre-restored streams  (collaboration with Sandra Clinton)

Water-rock interaction: The major and trace elements in water resources, and their isotope ratios, provide fingerprints of natural and human-induced processes. Current or recent work has included

• Naturally-occurring trace elements of health significance (“natural contaminants”) such as boron, arsenic, vanadium, chromium, fluoride, radium, radon, strontium
• The geochemical fingerprint of shale-water interaction in a proposed shale gas basin
• Underground storage of water

Environmental & energy geochemistry:

Spring sampling with GEOL 4145/5145 Hydrogeology class