 |
Matthew Reeves |
news release April 7 , 2005
Contacts: Heather Emmons, DRI PIO, heather.emmons@dri.edu, Reno
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Reeves receives DRI's Colin Warden Award for new method of analyzing contaminant flow through fractured rock
|
Matthew Reeves |
RENO,
Nev. -- Matthew Reeves, graduate research assistant in the Desert Research
Institute's division of hydrologic sciences, has received the $1,500 Colin
Warden Memorial Endowment Award for the development and application of a
new method for predicting contaminant migration in water through fractures
in rocks. Typically, predictions on how contaminants,
such as nuclear waste, are transported in ground water has been accomplished
through intensive site characterization of a rather small area of land and
incorporating the data obtained from the site characterization into a numerical
model.
Instead
of relying on numerical simulations for predictions, Reeves’ work centers
on the incorporation of fracture statistics such as length, density and orientation
to make predictions using an analytical equation. Using
supercomputers at DRI's Advanced Computing in Environmental Sciences program
to create synthetic data to test his equations, Reeves maps out the orientations
of fractures in rock and watches a plume grow and travel through it.
"The
supercomputers were key to the success of my research," Reeves said. "The
simulations were large enough that they exceeded what you could do with a
regular PC computationally."
With
several Terabytes of disk space at his disposal, Reeves focuses on large-scale
predictions that are several kilometers in size. Reeves' methodology
opens doors for potentially significant cost savings and increased efficiency
for contractors, consultants and government agencies that are seeking alternative
ways to predict contaminant movement in large areas.
The $1,500 award is named for Colin Warden, a Washoe Medical
Center electrician and an ardent environmentalist who died in 1991. His
family and friends established the endowment to promote environmental research
by graduate students working at DRI or supervised by DRI scientists.
provides critical funding in support of DRI's administration, operations and maintenance, through the University and Community College System of Nevada budget. While DRI’s portion of the UCCSN budget is less than 1 percent, the institute leverages these funds to enhance its competitiveness.