Editing Brine (section)

==In nature==
{{main|Saline water}}
[[File:Brine concentration measurement.jpg|thumb|upright|A NASA technician measures the concentration level of brine using a [[hydrometer]] at a [[salt evaporation pond]] in San Francisco.]]

Brines are produced in multiple ways in nature. Modification of seawater via evaporation results in the concentration of salts in the residual fluid, a characteristic geologic deposit called an [[evaporite]] is formed as different dissolved ions reach the saturation states of minerals, typically [[gypsum]] and [[halite]]. Dissolution of such salt deposits into water can produce brines as well. As seawater freezes, dissolved ions tend to remain in solution resulting in a fluid termed a cryogenic brine. At the time of formation, these cryogenic brines are by definition cooler than the freezing temperature of seawater and can produce a feature called a [[brinicle]] where cool brines descend, freezing the surrounding seawater.

The brine cropping out at the surface as saltwater springs are known as "licks" or "salines".<ref>{{cite web |title=The Scioto Saline-Ohio's Early Salt Industry |url=http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/Portals/10/pdf/GeoFacts/geof07.pdf |publisher=dnr.state.oh.us |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121007153134/http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/Portals/10/pdf/GeoFacts/geof07.pdf |archive-date=2012-10-07 }}</ref> The contents of dissolved solids in [[groundwater]] vary highly from one location to another on Earth, both in terms of specific constituents (e.g. [[halite]], [[anhydrite]], [[carbonate]]s, [[gypsum]], [[fluoride]]-salts, [[organic halide]]s, and [[sulfate]]-salts) and regarding the concentration level. Using one of several classification of groundwater based on [[total dissolved solids]] (TDS), brine is water containing more than 100,000&nbsp;mg/L TDS.<ref>{{cite web |title=Global Overview of Saline Groundwater Occurrence and Genesis |url=http://www.igrac.net/dynamics/modules/SFIL0100/view.php?fil_Id=135 |publisher=igrac.net |access-date=2017-07-17 |archive-date=2011-07-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110723153208/http://www.igrac.net/dynamics/modules/SFIL0100/view.php?fil_Id=135 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Brine is commonly produced during well completion operations, particularly after the [[hydraulic fracturing]] of a well.