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U.S. Department of Energy
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Background hydrocarbon vapor concentration study for underground fuel-storage tanks. Final report

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:5597531
The project was initiated to investigate the effectiveness of soil gas sampling in leak detection. Soil gas surveys were performed at 27 active gasoline service stations in three diverse geographic regions. Hydrocarbon vapor concentrations in the backfill surrounding the underground storage tanks were sampled and analyzed. The 27 gasoline service stations were selected as non-leaking sites and the three regions were selected for their active underground storage tank regulatory programs, as well as their differences in geology, hydrology and climate. A comparison was made with contaminated site data obtained from Tracer Research Corporation's historical records and significant differences can be seen between the two distributions. It was determined that the best approximation of total hydrocarbon (less light aliphatics) concentrations, based on available calibration data, was achieved using average response factor calculated from the daily response factors of benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and ortho-xylene.
Research Organization:
Geoscience Consultants Ltd., Albuquerque, NM (United States)
OSTI ID:
5597531
Report Number(s):
PB-91-191353/XAB; CNN: EPA-68-03-3409
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English