A Rapid Decision Support Tool for Estimating Impacts of a Vadose Zone Volatile Organic Compound Source on Groundwater and Soil Gas
Journal Article
·
· Ground Water Monitoring and Remediation
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
- INTERA, Inc., Richland, WA (United States)
- US Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha, NE (United States). Environmental and Munitions Center of Expertise
- Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center, Port Hueneme, CA (United States)
Diminishing rates of subsurface volatile contaminant removal by soil vapor extraction (SVE) oftentimes warrants an in‐depth performance assessment to guide remedy decision‐making processes. Such a performance assessment must include quantitative approaches to better understand the impact of remaining vadose zone contamination on soil gas and groundwater concentrations. The spreadsheet‐based Soil Vapor Extraction Endstate Tool (SVEET) software functionality has recently been expanded to facilitate quantitative performance assessments. The updated version, referred to as SVEET2, includes expansion of the input parameter ranges for describing a site (site geometry, source characteristics, etc.), an expanded list of contaminants, and incorporation of elements of the Vapor Intrusion Estimation Tool for Unsaturated‐zone Sources software to provide soil gas concentration estimates for use in vapor intrusion evaluation. As part of the update, SVEET2 was used to estimate the impact of a tetrachloroethene (PCE) vadose zone source on groundwater concentrations, comparing SVEET2 results to field‐observed values at an undisclosed site where SVE was recently terminated. PCE concentrations from three separate monitoring wells were estimated by SVEET2 to be within the range of 6.0–6.7 μg/L, as compared to actual field concentrations that ranged from 3 to 11 μg/L PCE. These data demonstrate that SVEET2 can rapidly provide representative quantitative estimates of impacts from a vadose zone contaminant source at field sites. Finally, in the context of the SVE performance assessment, such quantitative estimates provide a basis to support remedial and/or regulatory decisions regarding the continued need for vadose zone volatile organic compound remediation or technical justification for SVE termination, which can significantly reduce the cost to complete for a site.
- Research Organization:
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC05-76RL01830
- OSTI ID:
- 2574253
- Report Number(s):
- PNNL-SA--161793
- Journal Information:
- Ground Water Monitoring and Remediation, Journal Name: Ground Water Monitoring and Remediation Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 42; ISSN 1069-3629; ISSN 1745-6592
- Publisher:
- WileyCopyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Characterization and Remediation of Chlorinated Volatile Organic Contaminants in the Vadose Zone
Estimating the Impact of Vadose Zone Sources on Groundwater to Support Performance Assessment of Soil Vapor Extraction
Soil Vapor Extraction of PCE/TCE Contaminated Soil
Journal Article
·
Thu Feb 14 23:00:00 EST 2013
· Vadose Zone Journal, 12(4):1-17
·
OSTI ID:1117063
Estimating the Impact of Vadose Zone Sources on Groundwater to Support Performance Assessment of Soil Vapor Extraction
Journal Article
·
Thu Mar 13 00:00:00 EDT 2014
· Ground Water Monitoring and Remediation, 34(2):71-84
·
OSTI ID:1133223
Soil Vapor Extraction of PCE/TCE Contaminated Soil
Conference
·
Sat Aug 01 00:00:00 EDT 1998
·
OSTI ID:651650