Water

• Processes controlling the sources and cycling of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus in surface aquatic systems.

• Inter-relationships between hydrology, land use and water quality in upland catchments, especially acidification and metal mobilisation.

• Quantifying methyl halide emissions from different ecosystems.

• Biogeochemical cycling of trichloroacetic acid (a phytotoxicant) in the environment to determine whether it is derived from manmade (atmospheric oxidation of chlorinated solvents) or natural (in situ soil processes) sources.

• Demonstrating the viability of using ochre (a waste material from treating polluting mine drainage) to remove phosphorus from sewage effluent and agricultural runoff and to recycle the recovered phosphorus as an agricultural fertiliser.

• Assessing the effectiveness of sustainable urban drainage systems (SUDS) in remediation of urban runoff, particularly sedimentation and sediment quality in SUDS structures.

• Improving understanding of the functioning of constructed wetlands for farmyard runoff and wastewater treatment, including the effect of different reed populations on treatment performance.

(2021) Tracers reveal limited influence of plantation forests on surface runoff in a UK natural flood management catchment.  Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies. 36,100834.

*Authors:  Peskett, L.M., Heal, K.V., Macdonald, A.M., Black, A.R., Mcdonnell, J.J.

(2021) Water quality: the missing dimension of water in the water–energy–food nexus. Hydrological Sciences Journal. 66, 5.

*Authors: Heal, K., Bartosova, A., Hipsey, M.R., Chen, X., Buytaert, W., Li, H.Y.,  McGrane, S.J., Gupta, A.B., Cudennec, C.

(2020) Wettability Effects on Primary Drainage Mechanisms and NAPL Distribution: A Pore-Scale Study.  Water Resources Research. 56, 1.

*Authors: Molnar, I.L., Gerhard, J.I., Willson, C.S.,  O'Carroll, D.M.