CLAY A. COOPER

EDUCATION:

Ph.D., Hydrology, University of Nevada, Reno
M.S., Hydrology/Hydrogeology, University of Nevada, Reno
B.S., Geology, Northern Arizona University

ACADEMIC AFFILIATIONS:

Graduate Program of Hydrologic Sciences – University of Nevada Reno

PROFESSIONAL INTERESTS:

My research interests are in many aspects of transport phenomena and fluid dynamics in multiphase, multicomponent systems above and below the land surface. These include diffusion and dispersion in aquifers and reservoirs, gas flow in both porous media and fractures, density-driven flow due to unstable solute gradients, thermal convection and buoyancy-driven processes, and coupled (chemical, physical, biological) flow and transport, all operating over scales from millimeters to tens of kilometers. Some of these problems lend themselves well to laboratory study, and I am currently developing a research program that expands the use of this investigative tool. Laboratory experiments are currently under-utilized in the hydrologic sciences, although they fill a basic need to further our understanding of certain flow and transport processes. Laboratory investigation enhances our understanding primarily by allowing one to work with few assumptions, explore the physics and scaling properties of phenomena, and develop analytical models that explain correlations at full scale. The results can then be used to challenge and improve existing conceptual models, which in turn can be used to produce more refined numerical models.

RESEARCH AREAS:

Hydrology of the Unsaturated Zone; Contaminant Transport; Hydrogeological Controls on Availability and Quality of Ground Water

JOURNAL ARTICLES

Garcia, A.; Andraski, B.; D.A. Stonestrom; Cooper, C.A.; M.J. Johnson; R.L. Michel; S.W. Wheatcraft, 2009.

Transport of tritium contamination to the atmosphere in an arid environment. Vadose Zone Journal. v.8. pp.450-461. doi:10.2136/vzj2008.0022.

Ye, M.; Cooper, C.A.; Chapman, J.B.; Gillespie, D.; Zhang, Y., 2009.

Geologically based Markov chain model for simulating tritium transport with uncertain conditions in a nuclear-stimulated natural gas reservoir. SPE Reservoir Evaluation & Engineering. v.12. n.6. 10.2118/114920-PA.

Weisbrod, N.; Pillersdorf, M.; Dragila, M.; Graham, C.; Cassidy, J.; Cooper, C.A., 2005.

Evaporation from fractures exposed at land surface: Impact of gas-phase convection on salt accumulation. Dynamics of Fluids and Transport in Fractured Rock, Geophysical Monograph Series 162, American Geophysical Union. pp.151-164.

Mayers, C.J.; Andraski, B.J.; Cooper, C.A.; Wheatcraft, S.W.; Stonestrom, D.A.; Michel, R.L., 2005.

Modeling tritium transport through a deep unsaturated zone in an arid environment. Vadose Zone Journal. v.4. pp.967-976. doi:10.2136/vzj2004.0179.

Pringle, S.; Glass, R.J.; Cooper, C.A., 2002.

Double-diffusive finger convection in a Hele-Shaw cell: An experiment exploring the evolution of concentration fields, length scales and mass transfer. Transport in Porous Media. v.47. n.2. pp.195-214.

Cooper, C.A.; Glass, R.J.; Tyler, S.W., 2001.

Effect of buoyancy ratio on the development of double-diffusive finger convection in a Hele-Shaw cell. Water Resources Research. v.37. pp.2323-2332.

Stockman, H.W.; Glass, R.J.; Cooper, C.A.; Rajaram, H., 1998.

Accuracy and computational efficiency in 3D dispersion via lattice-Boltzmann: Models for dispersion in rough fractures and double-diffusive fingering. International Journal of Modern Physics C. v.9. n.8. pp.1-13.

Cooper, C.A.; Glass, R.J.; Tyler, S.W., 1997.

Experimental investigation of the stability boundary for double-diffusive finger convection in a Hele-Shaw cell. Water Resources Research. v.33. n.4. pp.517-526.

Stockman, H.W; Li, C.; Cooper, C., 1997.

Practical application of lattice-gas and lattice Boltzmann methods to dispersion problems. InterJournal of Complex Systems, manuscript no. 90.

CONFERENCE ABSTRACTS

Cooper, Clay A.; Decker, Dave L., 2009 (accepted).

Injection of nuclear rocket exhaust and water into a deep unsaturated zone. TOIUGH Symposium 2009. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Berkeley, Calif.

Cooper, Clay A; Decker, David L; , 2008.

Injection of Nuclear Rocket Engine Exhaust into Deep Unsaturated Zones. AGU 2008 Joint Assembly.

Weisbrod, N.; Dragila, M.; Kamai, T.; Pillersdorf, M.; Cooper, C.A., 2006.

On the Connection Between Surface Exposed Fractures, Atmospheric Conditions and Groundwater Salinization in Arid Environment. Geological Society of America Annual Meeting, October 22-25. Geological Society of America. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Cooper, C.A.; Ye, M.; Chapman, J.B., 2006.

Tritium transport through a low-permeability natural gas reservoir. TOUGH Symposium 2006, May 15-17. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Berkeley, Calif.

Breitmeyer, R.J.; Cooper, C.A.; Decker, D.L., 2006.

Thermal Convection in Laboratory-Scale Porous Media. American Geophysical Union. San Francisco, CA.

Shope, C.L.; Cooper, C.A.; Brock, J.T.; Benson, D.A., 2005.

Hyporheic exchange within a channel bar as a regulator of periphyton dynamics. GSA. Salt Lake City, Utah.

Zhu, J.; Young, M.H.; Cooper, C.A.; Devitt, D.A., 2005.

Modeling tritium vapor transport in soil profiles and subsequent tritium uptake by plants. ASA-CSSA-SSA. Salt Lake City, UT.

Graham, C.B.; Dragila, M.I.; Cooper, C.A.; Weisbrod, N., 2005.

Modeling salt redistribution in fractured porous media caused by convection driven evaporation within the fracture. AGU. New Orleans, LA.

Acheampong, S.Y.; Thomas, J.M.; Cooper, C.A., 2005.

Estimation of circulation depths of some low temperature thermal springs in east-central Nevada. NWRA. Reno, NV.