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Title: Effects of Cone Penetrometer Testing on Shallow Hydrogeology at a Contaminated Site

Abstract

Penetration testing is a popular and instantaneous technique for subsurface mapping, contaminant tracking, and the determination of soil characteristics. While the small footprint and reproducibility of cone penetrometer testing makes it an ideal method for in-situ subsurface investigations at contaminated sites, the effects to local shallow groundwater wells and measurable influence on monitoring networks common at contaminated sites is unknown. Physical and geochemical parameters associated with cone penetrometer testing were measured from a transect of shallow groundwater monitoring wells adjacent to penetrometer testing. For wells screened above the depth of cone refusal, the physical advancement and retraction of the cone had a significant effect ( p < 0.01) on water level for several pushes within 10 meters of a monitoring well, and a measured increase in specific conductivity. No effect on geochemistry or water level was observed in continuous monitoring data from wells screened below the depth of cone refusal, but variability in specific conductivity from these wells during penetration testing was only a fraction of the natural variation measured during precipitation events. Continuous measurements of specific conductivity and water level demonstrated that the effects of penetration testing have limited spatial and temporal distributions with a null effect post-testing.

Authors:
; ; ; ;
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
OSTI Identifier:
1839769
Alternate Identifier(s):
OSTI ID: 1870217
Grant/Contract Number:  
AC02-05CH11231; AC05-00OR22725; AC02- 05CH11231
Resource Type:
Published Article
Journal Name:
Frontiers in Environmental Science
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Name: Frontiers in Environmental Science Journal Volume: 9; Journal ID: ISSN 2296-665X
Publisher:
Frontiers Media SA
Country of Publication:
Switzerland
Language:
English
Subject:
58 GEOSCIENCES; 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; hydrogeology; contaminated site; shallow subsurface; cone penetrometer technology (CPT); mixed waste

Citation Formats

Putt, Andrew D., Kelly, Erin R., Lowe, Kenneth A., Rodriguez, Jr., Miguel, and Hazen, Terry C. Effects of Cone Penetrometer Testing on Shallow Hydrogeology at a Contaminated Site. Switzerland: N. p., 2022. Web. doi:10.3389/fenvs.2021.821882.
Putt, Andrew D., Kelly, Erin R., Lowe, Kenneth A., Rodriguez, Jr., Miguel, & Hazen, Terry C. Effects of Cone Penetrometer Testing on Shallow Hydrogeology at a Contaminated Site. Switzerland. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2021.821882
Putt, Andrew D., Kelly, Erin R., Lowe, Kenneth A., Rodriguez, Jr., Miguel, and Hazen, Terry C. Thu . "Effects of Cone Penetrometer Testing on Shallow Hydrogeology at a Contaminated Site". Switzerland. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2021.821882.
@article{osti_1839769,
title = {Effects of Cone Penetrometer Testing on Shallow Hydrogeology at a Contaminated Site},
author = {Putt, Andrew D. and Kelly, Erin R. and Lowe, Kenneth A. and Rodriguez, Jr., Miguel and Hazen, Terry C.},
abstractNote = {Penetration testing is a popular and instantaneous technique for subsurface mapping, contaminant tracking, and the determination of soil characteristics. While the small footprint and reproducibility of cone penetrometer testing makes it an ideal method for in-situ subsurface investigations at contaminated sites, the effects to local shallow groundwater wells and measurable influence on monitoring networks common at contaminated sites is unknown. Physical and geochemical parameters associated with cone penetrometer testing were measured from a transect of shallow groundwater monitoring wells adjacent to penetrometer testing. For wells screened above the depth of cone refusal, the physical advancement and retraction of the cone had a significant effect ( p < 0.01) on water level for several pushes within 10 meters of a monitoring well, and a measured increase in specific conductivity. No effect on geochemistry or water level was observed in continuous monitoring data from wells screened below the depth of cone refusal, but variability in specific conductivity from these wells during penetration testing was only a fraction of the natural variation measured during precipitation events. Continuous measurements of specific conductivity and water level demonstrated that the effects of penetration testing have limited spatial and temporal distributions with a null effect post-testing.},
doi = {10.3389/fenvs.2021.821882},
journal = {Frontiers in Environmental Science},
number = ,
volume = 9,
place = {Switzerland},
year = {2022},
month = {1}
}

Works referenced in this record:

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Use of CPT and other direct push methods for (hydro-) stratigraphic aquifer characterization — a field study
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