Linking spectral induced polarization (SIP) and subsurface microbial processes: Results from sand column incubation experiments

This dataset is comprised of spectral induced polarization (SIP) spectra and complementary biogeochemical data obtained in saturated columns packed with alternating layers of ferrihydrite-coated and pure quartz sand. Six identical column reactors were packed with the layered sand configuration and inoculated with Shewanella oneidensis supplemented with lactate and nitrate. Each replicate was sequentially sacrificed at pre-specified time points in order to monitor aqueous concentrations related to the dissimilatory reduction of nitrate to ammonium, coupled to the oxidation of lactate. The column sampled at the end of the incubation (i.e., sampled last), was fitted with electrodes for SIP measurements, conducted periodically (on the order of hours) throughout the incubation. Sacrificial sampling was necessary to relate bulk processes to SIP signals being measured within the experimental system. Furthermore, simulated biogeochemical concentration time-series and reaction rates were generated by a biomass-explicit diffusion-reaction model, fitted to the experimental biogeochemical data. A Cole-Cole relaxation was performed on the spectral geophysical data in order to extract chargeability and relaxation times, to relate these to microbial abundance and physiology as well as model-computed reaction rates.

This dataset was developed with the intention of capturing induced polarization, geo-electrical, responses associated with the growth dynamics of organic carbon degrading anaerobic subsurface microbes. The combined biogeochemical monitoring, spectral induced polarization measurements and both reactive transport and geophysical modeling, resulted in the generation of a unique, cross-disciplinary dataset that combines information gained from different approaches across two major geoscience disiplines. Specifically, experimental data and modelling of biogeochemical processes are combined with geophysical measurements and modelling, combining biogeochemistry and geophysics.

Van Cappellen, P., Mellage, A., Estella, A., Furman, A., Rezanezhad, F. and Smeaton, A. (2019) Linking spectral induced polarization (SIP) and subsurface microbial processes: Results from sand column incubation experiments. Waterloo, Canada: Canadian Cryospheric Information Network (CCIN). Unpublished Data.

Additional Publications:
Adrian Mellage, Christina M. Smeaton, Alex Furman, Estella A. Atekwana, Fereidoun Rezanezhad, and Philippe Van Cappellen. Linking Spectral Induced Polarization (SIP) and Subsurface Microbial Processes: Results from Sand Column Incubation Experiments. Environmental Science & Technology 2018 52 (4), 2081-2090.
DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.7b04420.

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https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.7b04420
Supporting information:
https://pubs.acs.org/doi/suppl/10.1021/acs.est.7b04420/suppl_file/es7b04420_si_002.pdf