Direct probability mapping of contaminants
Exhaustive characterization of a contaminated site is a physical and practical impossibility. Descriptions of the nature, extent, and level of contamination, as well as decisions regarding proposed remediation activities, must be made in a state of uncertainty based upon limited physical sampling. Geostatistical simulation provides powerful tools for investigating contaminant levels, and in particular, for identifying and using the spatial interrelationships among a set of isolated sample values. This additional information can be used to assess the likelihood of encountering contamination at unsampled locations and to evaluate the risk associated with decisions to remediate or not to remediate specific regions within a site. Past operation of the DOE Feed Materials Production Center has contaminated a site near Fernald, Ohio, with natural uranium. Soil geochemical data have been collected as part of the Uranium-in-Soils Integrated Demonstration Project. These data have been used to construct a number of stochastic images of potential contamination for parcels approximately the size of a selective remediation unit. Each such image accurately reflects the actual measured sample values, and reproduces the univariate statistics and spatial character of the extant data. Post-processing of a large number of these equally likely, statistically similar images produces maps directly showing the probability of exceeding specified levels of contamination. Evaluation of the geostatistical simulations can yield maps representing the expected magnitude of the contamination for various regions and other information that may be important in determining a suitable remediation process or in sizing equipment to accomplish the restoration.
- Research Organization:
- Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC04-94AL85000
- OSTI ID:
- 10192866
- Report Number(s):
- SAND-93-1261C; CONF-931095-43; ON: DE94002287; BR: GB0103012; TRN: 93:025640
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: Department of Energy environmental remediation conference,Augusta, GA (United States),24-28 Oct 1993; Other Information: PBD: 17 Sep 1993
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
SOILS
CONTAMINATION
URANIUM
RADIOECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
FEED MATERIALS PRODUCTION CENTER
REMEDIAL ACTION
SITE CHARACTERIZATION
054000
540250
540230
HEALTH AND SAFETY
SITE RESOURCE AND USE STUDIES
RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS MONITORING AND TRANSPORT