A confluence of water research
at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
As a California-based facility, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) understands the importance of responsible and sustainable water management. LLNL’s water-related research and operational programs span and connect many aspects of leading-edge water research and applications, including remediating legacy contamination at Department of Energy (DOE) facilities, understanding climate impacts on the hydrological cycle, and improving the resiliency of our state and national water infrastructure. Our work builds on the interdisciplinary strength of our workforce, unique laboratory capabilities, and world-class computational expertise.
In combination with our water research, LLNL is also dedicated to researching coastal ecosystems and the impact climate change has on aquatic environments. Find out how our water and coastal science research work together to help scientists understand the carbon cycle's influence on aquatic microbes by downloading the Coastal Science at LLNL factsheet.
Learn more about our work by exploring our research topics below or downloading the Water Research at LLNL factsheet.
Research

Behavior of Water at Surfaces and Interfaces
LLNL scientists are using first-principles simulations and in situ measurements to understand the physics of water and solute molecules near the surfaces of catalysts or membranes and in the confined spaces of pores or channels. By understanding transport of water contaminants, we can design better materials for water treatment.
To learn more about this research, contact Alex Noy or Tuan Anh Pham.

Physics of Clouds and Precipitation
Climate scientists at Livermore study interactions between the land and atmosphere, combining observations from the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement facility with state-of-the-art Earth system simulations. We develop models of how those interactions affect cloud formation, precipitation, and atmospheric chemistry, ultimately informing the global terrestrial water cycle.
To learn more about this research, contact Shaocheng Xie.

Paleoclimate Science
To understand the interplay between precipitation, evaporation, vegetation, and surface and subsurface hydrology, LLNL climate scientists study lake and wetland sediments as geochemical and sedimentological archives. Combining these observations with the use of ultra-rare isotope capabilities at LLNL’s Center for Accelerator Mass Spectrometry, we improve model predictions along with our understanding of natural climate systems and other Earth processes.
To learn more about this research, contact Susan Zimmerman.

Isotope Hydrology
Watershed scientists at LLNL study water flows and residence times in natural environments using isotopic and geochemical tracers. This research supports sustainable management of water resources and enhances our understanding of contaminant transport and nutrient and carbon-cycle science.
To learn more about this research, visit the Isotope Hydrology webpage.

Subsurface Reservoir Management
LLNL reservoir engineers, hydrologists, and geochemists couple modeling and analysis with field studies to quantify fluid movements in the subsurface and important rock–water interactions that control water composition and transport of contaminants. This research informs the design of geothermal reservoirs, oil and gas wells, subsurface energy storage systems, and geologic repositories for captured carbon dioxide, spent nuclear fuels, and other radioactive byproducts.
To learn more about this research, contact Susan Carroll.

Climate Change Detection and Attribution
Through rigorous statistical analysis and model interrogation, LLNL scientists improve our understanding of the nature and causes of climate change. The same techniques that attribute overall changes in atmospheric temperature to human activity are being used to quantify how natural and human-made factors can influence atmospheric moisture, precipitation, and sea level, thereby enhancing our ability to forecast and plan for times of water scarcity.
To learn more about this research, contact Philip Cameron-Smith.

Groundwater Protection
LLNL has long supported the protection of groundwater resources and management of legacy groundwater pollution issues. We have contributed to many national environmental science programs managed by DOE, including the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository project. Within California, LLNL geochemists and hydrologists have applied their skills to aquifer storage projects in Orange County and water management challenges in the Salton Sea basin.
To learn more about this research, contact Mavrik Zavarin or Andy Tompson.

Improved Western US Snowpack Predictions
LLNL scientists are developing novel machine learning methods to correct climate model biases and downscale climate model data to improve the accuracy and resolution of temperature, precipitation, and snowpack predictions. Improved climate predictions can help mitigate the threats climate change poses to the nation’s water security, critical agricultural industries and infrastructures, and hydropower generation.
To learn more about this research, contact Gemma Anderson.

Flow-Through Electrode Capacitive Deionization (FTE-CDI)
Engineers at LLNL are developing revolutionary desalination technologies that use electricity to remove salt from water. FTE-CDI requires special materials called carbon aerogels that have high capacitance, good electrical conductivity, and are porous enough to let water flow through freely in order to extract salts. For brackish water, FTE-CDI is fundamentally more energy efficient than traditional desalination technologies.
To learn more about this research, visit the FTE-CDI webpage.

Carbon Nanotube Membranes
Chemists and material scientists are studying molecular and ionic transport in single nanochannels and in nanoporous membranes under a variety of driving forces. Efforts are also underway to fabricate nanocomposite and biomimetic membranes for various applications, including physical and chemical separations, protective and breathable fabrics, and skin-inspired responsive systems.
To learn more about this research, contact Francesco Fornasiero.

Systems Analysis
Leveraging a rich legacy of energy system visualizations, LLNL analysts have turned their attention to the energy–water nexus. We are using a broad range of economic data to quantify the relationships between irrigation and biofuels, water and wastewater treatment and electricity, produced water and fossil fuels, and fresh water and power plant cooling—generating relevant findings for policymakers and other stakeholders.

Exascale Cooling
With the next generation of supercomputing already being installed on the Livermore campus, our facilities and infrastructure team is investigating ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle the vast quantities of water needed to cool one of the world’s most powerful computers.

Emerging Technologies
LLNL is always pursuing the next innovation in sustainable water management. From enhanced surfaces that improve ultraviolet treatment and novel materials that can capture water from air to engineered microbes that can recover heavy metals, researchers at the Laboratory are committed to advancing clean water innovations.
Publications
A. Deinhart, R. Bibby, A. Visser, M. Thaw, K. Thomas, Simplified Method for the In Situ Collection and Laboratory Analysis of Cosmogenic Tracers (Sulfur-35 and Sodium-22) to Determine Residence Time Distributions and Water Ages, Analytical Chemistry 93, 4472 (2021).
M. Thaw, A. Visser, R. Bibby, A. Deinhart, E. Oerter, M. Conklin, Vegetation water sources in California’s Sierra Nevada (USA) are young and change over time, a multi-isotope (𝛿18O, 𝛿2H, 3H) tracer approach, Hydrological Processes 35, e14249 (2021).
E. Oerter, M. Singleton, Z. Dai, M. Thaw, L. Davisson, Hydrogen and Oxygen Stable Isotope Composition of Water in Metaschoepite Mineralization on U3O8, Applied Geochemistry 112, 104469 (2020).
A. Ramachandran, D.I. Oyarzun, S.A. Hawks, P.G. Campbell, M. Stadermann, J.G. Santiago, Comments on “Comparison of Energy Consumption in Desalination by Capacitive Deionization and Reverse Osmosis”, Desalination 461, 30 (2019).
A. Visser, M. Thaw, A. Deinhart, R. Bibby, M. Safeeq, M. Conklin, B. Esser, Y. Van der Velde, Cosmogenic Isotopes Unravel the Hydrochronology and Water Storage Dynamics of the Southern Sierra Critical Zone, Water Resources Research 55, 1429 (2019).
A. Ramachandran, D.I. Oyarzun, S.A. Hawks, M. Stadermann, J.G. Santiago, High Water Recovery and Improved Thermodynamic Efficiency for Capacitive Deionization Using Variable Flowrate Operation, Water Research 155, 76 (2019).
M. de Jong, J.E. Moran, A. Visser, Identifying paleowater in California drinking water wells, Quaternary International , (2019).
N. Veale, A. Visser, B. Esser, M.J. Singleton, J.E. Moran, Nitrogen Cycle Dynamics Revealed Through δ18O-NO3− Analysis in California Groundwater, Geosciences 9, 95 (2019).
E. Oerter, G. Siebert, D. Bowling, G. Bowen, Soil water vapor isotopes identify missing water source for streamside trees, Ecohydrology 12, e2083 (2019).
S.A. Hawks, A. Ramachandran, P.G. Campbell, M.E. Suss, P.M. Biesheuvel, J.G. Santiago, M. Stadermann, Performance Metrics for the Objective Assessment of Capacitive Deionization Systems, Water Res. 152, 126 (2019).
E. Oerter, G. Bowen, Spatiotemporal heterogeneity in soil water stable isotopic composition and its ecohydrologic implications in semi-arid ecosystems, Hydrological Processes 33, 1724 (2019).
C. Gomez-Navarro, D. Pataki, G. Bowen, E. Oerter, Spatiotemporal variability in water sources of urban soils and trees in the semiarid, irrigated Salt Lake Valley, Ecohydrology 12, e2154 (2019).
E. Oerter, M. Singleton, M. Thaw, L. Davisson, Water vapor exposure chamber for constant humidity and hydrogen and oxygen stable isotope composition, Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry 33, 89 (2019).
D.I. Oyarzun, A. Hemmatifar, J.W. Palko, M. Stadermann, J.G. Santiago, Adsorption and Capacitive Regeneration of Nitrate Using Inverted Capacitive Deionization with Surfactant Functionalized Carbon Electrodes, Sep. Purif. Technol. 194, 410 (2018).
A. Visser, M. Thaw, B. Esser, Analysis of air mass trajectories to explain observed variability of tritium in precipitation at the Southern Sierra Critical Zone Observatory, California, USA, Journal of Environmental Radioactivity 181, 42 (2018).
Y. Qu, P.G. Campbell, A. Hemmatifar, J.M. Knipe, C.K. Loeb, J.J. Reidy, M.A. Hubert, M. Stadermann, J.G. Santiago, Charging and Transport Dynamics of a Flow-Through Electrode Capacitive Deionization System, J. Phys. Chem. B 122, 240 (2018).
A. Ramachandran, S.A. Hawks, M. Stadermann, J.G. Santiago, Frequency Analysis and Resonant Operation for Efficient Capacitive Deionization, Water Res. 144, 581 (2018).
A. Visser, J.E. Moran, M.J. Singleton, B.K. Esser, Importance of river water recharge to the San Joaquin Valley groundwater system, Hydrological Processes 32, 1202 (2018).
E. Oerter, M. Singleton, L. Davisson, Hydrogen and oxygen stable isotope dynamics of hyper-saline and salt-saturated aqueous solutions, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta 238, 316 (2018).
G. Bowen, A. Putman, J.R. Brooks, D. Bowling, E. Oerter, S. Good, Inferring the source of evaporated waters using stable H and O isotopes, Oecologia 187, 1025 (2018).
D.I. Oyarzun, A. Hemmatifar, J.W. Palko, M. Stadermann, J.G. Santiago, Ion Selectivity in Capacitive Deionization with Functionalized Electrode: Theory and Experimental Validation, Water Res. X 209, 100008 (2018).
E. Avery, R. Bibby, A. Visser, B. Esser, J. Moran, Quantification of Groundwater Discharge in a Subalpine Stream Using Radon-222, Water 10, 100 (2018).
S.A. Hawks, J.M. Knipe, P.G. Campbell, C.K. Loeb, M.A. Hubert, J.G. Santiago, M. Stadermann, Quantifying the Flow Efficiency in Constant-Current Capacitive Deionization, Water Res. 129, 327 (2018).
A. Ramachandran, A. Hemmatifar, S.A. Hawks, M. Stadermann, J.G. Santiago, Self Similarities in Desalination Dynamics and Performance Using Capacitive Deionization, Water Res. 140, 323 (2018).
E. Peters, A. Visser, B. Esser, J. Moran, Tracers Reveal Recharge Elevations, Groundwater Flow Paths and Travel Times on Mount Shasta, California, Water 10, 97 (2018).
A. Hemmatifar, D.I. Oyarzun, J.W. Palko, S.A. Hawks, M. Stadermann, J.G. Santiago, Equilibria Model for PH Variations and Ion Adsorption in Capacitive Deionization Electrodes, Water Res. 122, 387 (2017).
E. Oerter, M. Malone, A. Putman, L. Stark, D. Drits, G. Bowen, Every apple has a voice: Using stable isotopes to teach about food sourcing and the water cycle, Hydrology and Earth System Sciences 21, 3799 (2017).
E. Oerter, M. Singleton, L. Davisson, Hydrogen and oxygen stable isotope signatures of goethite hydration waters by thermogravimetry-enabled laser spectroscopy, Chemical Geology 475, 14 (2017).
E. Oerter, G. Bowen, In situ monitoring of H and O stable isotopes in soil water reveals ecohydrologic dynamics in managed soil systems, Ecohydrology 10, e1841 (2017).
E. Oerter, A. Perelet, E. Pardyjak, G. Bowen, Membrane inlet laser spectroscopy to measure H and O stable isotope compositions of soil and sediment pore water with high sample throughput, Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry 31, 75 (2017).
S.H. Urióstegui, R.K. Bibby, B.K. Esser, J.F. Clark, Quantifying annual groundwater recharge and storage in the central Sierra Nevada using naturally occurring 35S, Hydrological Processes 31, 1382 (2017).
H.J. Schenk, S. Espino, A. Visser, B.K. Esser, Dissolved atmospheric gas in xylem sap measured with membrane inlet mass spectrometry, Plant, Cell & Environment 39, 944 (2016).
P.A. Harms, A. Visser, J.E. Moran, B.K. Esser, Distribution of tritium in precipitation and surface water in California, Journal of Hydrology 534, 63 (2016).
A. Hemmatifar, J.W. Palko, M. Stadermann, J.G. Santiago, Energy Breakdown in Capacitive Deionization, Water Res. 104, 303 (2016).
Y. Qu, P.G. Campbell, L. Gu, J.M. Knipe, E. Dzenitis, J.G. Santiago, M. Stadermann, Energy Consumption Analysis of Constant Voltage and Constant Current Operations in Capacitive Deionization, Desalination 400, 18 (2016).
A. Visser, J.E. Moran, D. Hillegonds, M.J. Singleton, J.T. Kulongoski, K. Belitz, B.K. Esser, Geostatistical analysis of tritium, groundwater age and other noble gas derived parameters in California, Water Research 91, 314 (2016).
J. Alikhani, A.L. Deinhart, A. Visser, R.K. Bibby, R. Purtschert, J.E. Moran, A. Massoudieh, B.K. Esser, Nitrate vulnerability projections from Bayesian inference of multiple groundwater age tracers, Journal of Hydrology 543, 167 (2016).
J. Clark, S. Urióstegui, R. Bibby, B. Esser, G. Tredoux, Quantifying Apparent Groundwater Ages near Managed Aquifer Recharge Operations Using Radio-Sulfur (35S) as an Intrinsic Tracer, Water 8, 474 (2016).
S.H. Urióstegui, R.K. Bibby, B.K. Esser, J.F. Clark, Quantifying groundwater travel time near managed recharge operations using 35S as an intrinsic tracer, Journal of Hydrology 543, 145 (2016).
C.T. Green, B.C. Jurgens, Y. Zhang, J.J. Starn, M.J. Singleton, B.K. Esser, Regional oxygen reduction and denitrification rates in groundwater from multi-model residence time distributions, San Joaquin Valley, USA, Journal of Hydrology 543, 155 (2016).
M.F. Verce, V.M. Madrid, S.D. Gregory, Z. Demir, M.J. Singleton, E.P. Salazar, P.J. Jackson, R.U. Halden, A. Verce, A Long-Term Field Study of In Situ Bioremediation in a Fractured Conglomerate Trichloroethene Source Zone, Bioremediation Journal 19, 18 (2015).
S.H. Urióstegui, R.K. Bibby, B.K. Esser, J.F. Clark, Analytical Method for Measuring Cosmogenic 35S in Natural Waters, Analytical Chemistry 87, 6064 (2015).
Y. Qu, T.F. Baumann, J.G. Santiago, M. Stadermann, Characterization of Resistances of a Capacitive Deionization System, Environ. Sci. Technol. 49, 9699 (2015).
A. Hematifar, M. Stadermann, J.G. Santiago, Two-Dimensional Porous Electrode Model for Capacitive Deionization, Journal of Physical Chemistry C 119, 24681 (2015).
E. Oerter, M. Singleton, Z. Dai, M. Thaw, L. Davisson, Hydrogen and Oxygen Stable Isotope Composition of Water in Metaschoepite Mineralization on U3O8, Applied Geochemistry 112, 104469 (2020).
M.E. Suss, P.M. Biesheuvel, T.F. Baumann, M. Stadermann, J.G. Santiago, In Situ Spatially and Temporally Resolved Measurements of Salt Concentration between Charging Porous Electrodes for Desalination by Capacitive Deionization, Environ. Sci. Technol. 48, 2008 (2014).
A. Benson, M. Zane, T. Becker, A. Visser, S. Uriostegui, E. DeRubeis, J. Moran, B. Esser, J. Clark, Quantifying Reaeration Rates in Alpine Streams Using Deliberate Gas Tracer Experiments, Water 6, 1013 (2014).
D.C. Segal, J.E. Moran, A. Visser, M.J. Singleton, B.K. Esser, Seasonal variation of high elevation groundwater recharge as indicator of climate response, Journal of Hydrology 519, 3129 (2014).
A. Visser, M.J. Singleton, D.J. Hillegonds, C.A. Velsko, J.E. Moran, B.K. Esser, A membrane inlet mass spectrometry system for noble gases at natural abundances in gas and water samples, Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry 27, 2472 (2013).
M.E. Suss, T.F. Baumann, M.A. Worsley, K.A. Rose, T.F. Jaramillo, M. Stadermann, J.G. Santiago, Impedance-based study of capacitive porous carbon electrodes with hierarchical and bimodal porosity, Journal of Power Sources 241, 266 (2013).
J.T. Kulongoski, D.R. Hilton, P.H. Barry, B.K. Esser, D. Hillegonds, K. Belitz, Volatile fluxes through the Big Bend section of the San Andreas Fault, California: Helium and carbon-dioxide systematics, Chemical Geology 339, 92 (2013).
M.E. Suss, T.F. Baumann, W.L. Bourcier, C.M. Spadaccini, K.A. Rose, J.G. Santiago, M. Stadermann, Capacitive Desalination with Flow-through Electrodes, Energy Environ. Sci. 5, 9511 (2012).
D.R. O’Leary, J.A. Izbicki, J.E. Moran, T. Meeth, B. Nakagawa, L. Metzger, C. Bonds, M.J. Singleton, Movement of Water Infiltrated from a Recharge Basin to Wells, Ground Water 50, 242 (2011).
M.K. Landon, C.T. Green, K. Belitz, M.J. Singleton, B.K. Esser, Relations of hydrogeologic factors, groundwater reduction-oxidation conditions, and temporal and spatial distributions of nitrate, Central-Eastside San Joaquin Valley, California, USA, Hydrogeology Journal 19, 1203 (2011).
M.J. Singleton, J.E. Moran, Dissolved noble gas and isotopic tracers reveal vulnerability of groundwater in a small, high-elevation catchment to predicted climate changes, Water Resour. Res. 46, W00F06 (2010).
B.D. Cey, G.B. Hudson, J.E. Moran, B.R. Scanlon, Evaluation of Noble Gas Recharge Temperatures in a Shallow Unconfined Aquifer, Ground Water 47, 646 (2009).
B.D. Cey, G.B. Hudson, J.E. Moran, B.R. Scanlon, Impact of Artificial Recharge on Dissolved Noble Gases in Groundwater in California, Environ. Sci. Technol. 42, 1017 (2008).
W.W. McNab, M.J. Singleton, J.E. Moran, B.K. Esser, Assessing the impact of animal waste lagoon seepage on the geochemistry of an underlying shallow aquifer, Environmental Science and Technology 41, 753 (2007).
M.J. Singleton, B.K. Esser, J.E. Moran, G.B. Hudson, W.W. Mcnab, T. Harter, Saturated zone denitrification: Potential for natural attenuation of nitrate contamination in shallow groundwater under dairy operations, Environmental Science and Technology 41, 759 (2007).
S.F. Carle, B.K. Esser, J.E. Moran, High-resolution simulation of basin scale nitrate transport considering aquifer system heterogeneity, Geosphere 2, 195 (2006).
K.B. Moore, B. Ekwurzel, B.K. Esser, G.B. Hudson, J.E. Moran, Sources of groundwater nitrate revealed using residence time and isotope methods, Applied Geochemistry 21, 1016 (2006).
M.J. Singleton, K.N. Woods, M.E. Conrad, D.J. DePaolo, P.E. Dresel, Tracking Sources of Unsaturated Zone and Groundwater Nitrate Contamination Using Nitrogen and Oxygen Stable Isotopes at the Hanford Site, Washington, Environmental Science & Technology 39, 3563 (2005).
K.A. Surano, G.B. Hudson, R.A. Failor, J.M. Sims, R.C. Holland, S.C. MacLean, J.C. Garrison, Helium-3 mass spectrometry for low-level tritium analysis of environmental samples, Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry 161, 443 (1992).
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