Development of a numerical simulator for in-situ remediation by alcohol flooding
- Clemson Univ., SC (United States). Earth Sciences
At many sites in the US, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have been allowed to contaminate groundwater supplies. Of particular concern are the VOCs which exist as a separate phase and have a higher density than water. These liquids are known as Dense Non-Aqueous Phase Liquids (DNAPLs). During the migration of these liquids below the water table, a certain amount of the DNAPL will become trapped as globules in the pore spaces between the soil grains. This trapped fraction is known as the residual saturation. The remediation of sites contaminated with DNAPLs using traditional pump and treat methods has been shown to be ineffective and inefficient at removing the residual contamination. The mobilization of the trapped DNAPL globules using alcohol flooding is a promising new technology that is currently in the experimental stage. Injecting alcohol solutions into contaminated soils reduces the interfacial tension between the aqueous and NAPL phases, allowing the trapped globules to move between the pore constrictions and to be recovered downgradient. The process of applying this technology to field applications demands an ability to predict, and thus model, the complex flow and interactions of an alcohol/water/DNAPL system moving through porous media. A compositional, multiphase Integral Finite Difference numerical simulator is presently being developed to model this process. The model will use a digitized version of the ternary diagram that represents the particular alcohol/water/DNAPL system being investigated. While the current code is being developed to simulate one-dimensional column experiments, the code will contain the capabilities for predicting multidimensional, field scale behavior given the appropriate parameters and measurements.
- OSTI ID:
- 6086867
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9304188--
- Journal Information:
- Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs; (United States), Journal Name: Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs; (United States) Vol. 25:4; ISSN GAAPBC; ISSN 0016-7592
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
540250* -- Environment
Terrestrial-- Site Resource & Use Studies-- (1990-)
ALCOHOLS
ANALOG SYSTEMS
CLEANING
DECONTAMINATION
FLUID FLOW
FLUID INJECTION
FUNCTIONAL MODELS
GROUND WATER
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
HYDROXY COMPOUNDS
LAND RECLAMATION
MANAGEMENT
MATERIALS RECOVERY
MATTER
MULTIPHASE FLOW
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POROSITY
PROCESSING
SIMULATORS
SOILS
SOLVENT PROPERTIES
SURFACE PROPERTIES
SURFACE TENSION
VOLATILE MATTER
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE PROCESSING
WATER