Open AccessALCOHOL FLUSHING FOR REMOVING DNAPL'S FROM CLAY AND SAND LAYERED AQUIFER SYSTEMS
Author(s) -
Nancy J. Hayden,
Parminder K. Padgett,
Clifford R. Farrell,
J. Diebold,
Xing-zhi Zhou,
Madison M. Hood
Publication year - 1999
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
DOI - 10.2172/772480
Subject(s) - flushing , environmental remediation , environmental science , groundwater , aquifer , waste management , environmental engineering , underground storage tank , contamination , groundwater remediation , geology , storage tank , geotechnical engineering , engineering , ecology , medicine , biology , endocrinology
Alcohol flushing, also called cosolvent flushing, is a relatively new in-situ remediation technology that shows promise for removing organic solvents from the soil and groundwater. Soil and groundwater contamination from organic solvents and petroleum products is one of the most serious and widespread environmental problems of our time. Most of the DOE facilities and inactive sites are experiencing soil and groundwater contamination from organic solvents. These water immiscible solvents have entered the subsurface from leaking underground storage tanks and piping, and from past waste handling and disposal practices such as leaking lagoons, holding ponds and landfills. In many cases, they have traveled hundreds of feet down into the saturated zone. If left in the soil, these chemicals may pose a significant environmental and human health risk. Alcohol flushing has potential for application to spilled solvents located deep within the saturated zone which are difficult if not impossible to remove by current remediation strategies, thus, greatly expediting restoration time, reducing total remediation cost and reducing risk