Investigations on the origin of mineral waters by analysis of stable isotopes of water and sulfate

Stable isotope analyses of more than 70 mineral water samples, mainly from Germany, were used to investigate their composition and genesis. An influence of water of meteoric origin (precipitation) was indicated by an altitude and latitude effect. Assuming the altitude of the bottling sites (m a.s.l.) and their distance from the North Sea (km), corresponding correlations with regression coefficients of 0.34 - 0.42 and 0.50 -0.64 were determined for d18O and d2H, respectively. In comparison with long-term mean values of annual precipitation of selected German GNIP stations, the percentage of young groundwater as well as groundwater recharge levels could also be estimated for the mineral waters. The origin of sulfate was assessed by d18O-/d34S sulfate isotope analyses. Additionally, chloride, sulfate and silicon concentrations of the mineral waters were evaluated.