Improvement of Field and Laboratory Instrumentation for Environmental Hydrogeology: Part 2

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Undergraduate environmental education for students majoring in hydrology and other environmental science and engineering disciplines should be centered around practical applications. Students must understand the critical scientific and engineering issues and become proficient in solving multidisciplinary problems using high-technology tools. This project improves existing field and laboratory facilities by providing such tools to undergraduate students from several departments in three colleges at the university. Undergraduate environmental courses have been taught with laboratory components, in which practical aspects of environmental science and engineering are emphasized. This project provides for the field and laboratory equipment needed to improve the current disciplinary laboratory courses and to initiate new multidisciplinary courses that aim to develop in students the ability to integrate knowledge across traditional disciplines. The facility consists of three integrated parts: (1) a field site equipped with pumping/injecting wells, monitoring wells, and accessories; (2) a physical and chemical laboratory equipped for determination of soil and water properties; and (3) a computer laboratory equipped for data acquisition, analysis, interpretation, and visualization. Field experiments deal with water flow, water resources evaluation, water chemistry and quality, and geophysical methods. In the laboratory, tests are performed to determine physical and chemical properties of soils and chemical composition of water. The results of field and laboratory experiments are analyzed using data reduction and data visualization software. The following courses use the laboratory: hydrogeology, subsurface hydrology, water chemistry, vadose zone monitoring methods, vadose zone hydrology, groundwater resources evaluation, well logging, and environmental monitoring. *