Electrical resistivity earth imaging system

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We are requesting funding to purchase an electrical resistivity imaging system (ERI). This would be the only system of its kind directly supporting University research in British Columbia. Electrical resistivity is an inherent property of all materials; it is a measure of the degree to which a material resists the flow of an electrical current. In sediments or rock this property is a function of porosity, saturation, resistivity of pore fluids and the solid phase, and the material texture. Consequently, different sediments and rock are expected to exhibit large contrasts in electrical resistivity. The electrical resistivity imaging system requested in this application contains the hardware and software required to accurately and rapidly measure these resistivity contrasts and to resolve the moisture conditions and subsurface architecture of sediments and rock. This equipment will be heavily used as it will support a broad range of research programs in glacial geomorphology and stratigraphy, geotechnical engineering, hydrogeology and hydrology.  These research programs are designed to (1) advance our understanding of the formation of glacial landforms and the evolution of glacial landscapes and from this to expand our knowledge of ice motion, ice plumbing systems and environmental change during the last ice age, (2) explore regional-scale groundwater flow, with an emphasis on coastal aquifer hydrogeology and fluid flow in fractured rocks, (3) characterize and model soil and rock slope stability, and (4) investigate the role of bedrock topography and spatial patterns in soil depth on hydrological processes.