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Design of dry barriers for containment of contaminants in unsaturated soils

Conference ·
 [1]; ;  [2]
  1. Univ. of Wollongong (Australia)
  2. Univ. of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM (United States)
A dry barrier is a region of very dry conditions in unsaturated soil that prevents vertical migration of water created by circulating dry air through the formation. Dry soil creates a barrier to vertical water movement by decreasing the soil`s hydraulic conductivity, a concept also used in capillary barriers. A dry barrier may be a viable method for providing containment of a contaminant plume in a setting with a thick unsaturated zone and dry climate. The principal factors which determine the feasibility of a dry barrier include: (1) an and environment, (2) thick vadose zone, and (3) the ability to circulate air through the vadose zone. This study investigated the technical and economic considerations associated with creating a dry barrier to provide containment of a hypothetical 1 ha aqueous contaminant plume. The concept appears to be competitive with other interim containment methods such as ground freezing.
Research Organization:
USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
OSTI ID:
576619
Report Number(s):
CONF-970208--Proc.; ON: DE98001967
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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