Karst water samples - Rull Cave and Vall d'Ebo area (2022)

The data corresponds to karst water samples taken inside the Rull Cave (38° 48′ 40″ N, 0° 10′ 38″ W, 470 m.a.s.l.), two natural karst springs and one pumped well, all three sites located in Vall d’Ebo. Alicante, in Mediterranean southeastern Spain.

The water samples were collected between December 2021 and December 2022, as described in Ruiz et al. (2024). The database includes onsite water parameters and chemical composition of 55 karst water samples. These samples include the two largest water accumulations inside the cave (named Gour 1 and Gour 2), four drip sites (named after their position relative to the cave floor, Lower, Middle 1, Middle 2, Upper), and one particular drip site whose water was collected over monthly intervals (Stored). The database also includes water samples of two karst springs (Serra and Xili), and one pumped well (Heretats), all located in the area surrounding the cave. Cave water samples are classified following the different stages the cave undergoes yearly regarding CO₂ concentration in cave air: CO₂ inflow and outflow (transitional stages), high CO₂ and low CO₂ (defined in Pla et al., 2020).

In situ water parameters (temperature, electrical conductivity, pH) were measured using a HANNA HI98194 portable meter equipped with a multiparameter pH/EC/DO/Temperature probe (HI7698194). The samples were stored in polypropylene containers for the analysis of major ions using ion chromatography (DIONEX DX 500), trace elements using ICP-MS, and for the determination of bicarbonates through neutralization titration with methyl orange and HCl 0.01 N.