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Boron Isotopic Compositions of Near-Surface Fluids: A Tracer for Identification of Natural and Anthropogenic Contaminant Sources

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Abstract

Boron (B) is a sensitive stable isotope tracer which allows identification of different anthropogenic contaminant sources, originating from man-made boron products manufactured from non-marine borates (δ11B ≤ +10‰), in near-surface fluids which are characterized by a different natural background signature of predominantly meteoric origin. The data presented show that the boron isotopic composition of uncontaminated groundwater at the study site (δ11B = +12.0‰) is similar to that of local precipitation and significantly different from two distinct anthropogenic contaminant sources, identified as Ca- and/or Na/Ca-borates and Na-borates in `low-δ11B' (–6.0‰) and `high-δ11B' (+7.5 to +9.0‰) municipalsolid waste landfill leachates, respectively. The boron isotopic signature of contaminants can remain preserved over several decades, in contrast to aqueous B concentrations which are less diagnostic due to their sensitivity to dilution with low-B meteoric waters.

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  1. Institut für Geologie und Paläontologie, Eberhard-Karls-Universität Tübingen, Germany

    S. R. Barth

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Barth, S.R. Boron Isotopic Compositions of Near-Surface Fluids: A Tracer for Identification of Natural and Anthropogenic Contaminant Sources. Water, Air, & Soil Pollution 124, 49–60 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005210226830

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