Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Folkerts, Erik J.
• Blewett, Tamzin A.
• Delompré, Perrine
• Mehler, W. Tyler
• Flynn, Shannon L.
• Sun, Chenxing
• Zhang, Yifeng
• Martin, Jonathan W.
• Alessi, Daniel S.
• Goss, Greg G.

Titel

Toxicity in aquatic model species exposed to a temporal series of three different flowback and produced water samples collected from a horizontal hydraulically fractured well

Ist Teil von

• Ecotoxicology and environmental safety, 2019-09, Vol.180, p.600-609

Ort / Verlag

Netherlands: Elsevier Inc

Erscheinungsjahr

2019

Quelle

Elsevier ScienceDirect Journals

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• In the present study, we compared the toxicity and associated chemical characterizations of flowback and produced water (FPW) collected from a single horizontal hydraulically fractured well at different time points during FPW production. Since few studies on whole mixture toxicity related to FPW exist, our aims were to determine both overall toxicity of the FPW mixture in a suite of organisms (Daphnia magna, Lumbriculus variegatus, Danio rerio, and Oncorhynchus mykiss) and also determine if toxicity changes depending on variation in FPW chemical properties as a function of time sampled (1.33, 72, and 228 h FPW samples collected immediately post-well production onset were analyzed in current study). FPW chemical composition was determined via quadra-pole inductively coupled plasma – mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry (ICP-MS/MS), full-scan high performance liquid chromatography/Orbitrap mass spectrometry (HPLC/Orbitrap-MS), and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). We observed that FPW sampled later in the production process contained higher ion and total dissolved solids concentrations, whereas the highest concentrations of dissolved organic compounds were observed in the earliest FPW sample analyzed. Toxicity associated with FPW exposure was deemed to be species-specific to a certain extent, but general trends revealed the earliest FPW sampled contained highest toxic potential. Accordingly, we theorize that although the saline conditions of FPW are the foremost toxicological drivers to freshwater organisms, dissolved organics associated with FPW significantly contribute to the overall toxicity of exposed organisms. [Display omitted] •Temporal sampling of Hydraulic Fracturing Flowback and Produced Water (FPW) toxicity.•Earliest FPW samples had highest toxicity amongst most aquatic species examined.•Increases in FPW total dissolved solids occurs as FPW sampling continues.•Organics are highly variable but are generally highest in earlier FPW samples.•Species specific sensitivity to FPW reflects differences in organism biology.