Electric potential variations associated with yearly lake level variations
Abstract
Electric potential variations have been recorded from November 1995 to February 1996 and continuously since October 1996 at 14 measurement points on a one km wide ridge separating two lakes in the French Alps. The levels of the lakes vary by several tens of meters on a yearly cycle, inducing stress variations and fluid percolation. At one point, unambiguous variations as large as 120 mV are observed over a year, linearly correlated with the levels of the lakes with a magnitude of 2 mV per meter of water level change. This particular measurement point lies at the edge of a SP anomaly, which supports the presence of a localized zone of ground water flow forced by the lake level, suggesting an electrokinetic mechanism. The observed correlation implies a ζ‐potential of the order of ‐8 mV for a 60 Ωm electrolyte, in agreement with laboratory measurements.
Additional Information
© 1998 American Geophysical Union. Received 6 November 1997; accepted 20 March 1998. This experiment was funded by the Environment Program of the Commissariat à L'Énergie Atomique, and by the Ministry of Environment. The authors pay homage to G. Sellier who installed the CH measurement point, his last field work before his untimely death. G. Petiau is thanked for sharing with us his tremendous expertise on electrodes, and EDF for its water level data and access to the lakes.Attached Files
Published - PerrierGRL1998.pdf
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Additional details
- Eprint ID
- 33958
- Resolver ID
- CaltechAUTHORS:20120910-104206975
- Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique Environment program
- Ministry of Environment (France)
- Created
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2012-09-10Created from EPrint's datestamp field
- Updated
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2021-11-09Created from EPrint's last_modified field
- Caltech groups
- Seismological Laboratory, Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences (GPS)