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A natural gradient experiment on solute transport in a sand aquifer: 4. Sorption of organic solutes and its influence on mobility
Author(s) -
Curtis Gary P.,
Roberts Paul V.,
Reihard Martin
Publication year - 1986
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1029/wr022i013p02059
Subject(s) - sorption , partition coefficient , tetrachloroethylene , sorbent , bromoform , total organic carbon , environmental chemistry , chemistry , aquifer , aqueous solution , groundwater , mineralogy , chromatography , geology , organic chemistry , geotechnical engineering , adsorption , chloroform , trichloroethylene
Laboratory investigations were conducted to determine whether the observed field retardation of bromoform, carbon tetrachloride, tetrachloroethylene, 1,2‐dichlorobenzene, and hexachloroethane at the Borden field site could be explained by the linear, reversible, equilibrium sorption model. The five halogenated organic solutes, which have octanol‐water partition coefficients ranging from 200 to 4000, were the same as those used in the field study. The sorbent, a medium sand containing 0.02% organic carbon, was excavated 11.5 m from the experimental well field at the Borden site. Sorption isotherms were linear in the aqueous concentration range from 1 to 50 μg/L and could be described by a single distribution coefficient K d . The experimentally determined K d exceed those predicted by the hydrophobic sorption model that accounts only for partitioning into organic matter, by factors ranging from 1.7 for hexachloroethane to 10 for tetrachloroethylene. Retardation factors inferred from the laboratory determined distribution coefficients fell within the range estimated from spatial sampling data in the field experiment.