AquaChem manages water quality data, allowing the user to plot data, perform common statistical analyses, model water chemistry with PHREEQC, and create simple reports. AquaChem is compatible with Microsoft (MS) Office; the database created by AquaChem can be opened and modified in MS Access and data can be imported to AquaChem from text formatted and MS Excel files.

The most useful feature is the ability to plot data quickly. Map plots, displaying water quality data in diagrams using X and Y coordinates for station location, can be created and AutoCAD or common graphics files can be used as base map. Also, chemistry of water from different wells, or groups of wells, can be compared in various diagrams such as ternary, Piper, and Stiff. Saturation indices can be calculated with a built-in basic version of PHREEQC and data files can be constructed in AquaChem for input to PHREEQC for more rigorous modeling.

Statistical tools include trend analysis (Mann-Kendall, linear), normality tests, and evaluation of correlation between parameters. Although, database management and report preparation may be as easily performed in Excel and Access, the statistical tools in AquaChem and the ease and speed of creating diagrams used in aquatic chemistry allows the user to quickly analyze and present data. AquaChem is not a substitute for more advanced geochemical modeling programs but is a useful tool for interpreting data and discovering trends in the data. AquaChem is available from IGWMC (http://typhoon.mines.edu/software/igwmcsoft/) for $945 for a single license.