Remediation of a fractured clay soil contaminated with gasoline containing MTBE
- Oregon Graduate Institute, Portland, OR (United States)
- BP Oil Europe, Brussels (Belgium)
Gasoline and other light non-aqueous phase liquids (LNAPLs) released into fractured clay soils initially move by advection of the LNAPL through the fractures. Once advective movement of the LNAPL ceases, dissolution of the gasoline components into the pore water and diffusion into the intact blocks of clay becomes an important transport process. The aqueous-phase flux of each compound in the mixture depends in large part upon its aqueous solubility. For example, a low-solubility compound like isooctane remains primarily in the fracture in the LNAPL. A high-solubility compound, like methyl-tert-butyl ether (MTBE), dissolves readily and may move almost entirely into the clay matrix. The distribution of compounds between the matrix and the fractures will have an important impact on the rate at which the gasoline contaminated soil can be remediated. In this context, the presence of soluble additives like MTBE can significantly impact the risk and remediation time for the, soil. Beginning in 1993 a field study to examine the applicability of air flushing for remediation of low-permeability soils was sponsored by API. The study focused on a variety of soil vapor extraction (SVE) and in situ air sparging (IAS) approaches for mass removal and risk reduction. The source of gasoline contamination in this study was a release of 50 liters of a mixture containing 14 gasoline hydrocarbons ranging from pentane to naphthalene, and including MTBE. The mixture was released into the shallow subsurface and allowed to redistribute for 10 months prior to air flushing startup. Numerical modeling indicated that essentially all of the MTBE should have dissolved into the matrix. In contrast, essentially all of the isooctane should have remained in the LNAPL in the fractures.
- OSTI ID:
- 569892
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-971116--
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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