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Application of Ground‐Water Flow Theory to a Subsurface Oil Spill a
Author(s) -
Holzer Thomas L.
Publication year - 1976
Publication title -
groundwater
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.84
H-Index - 94
eISSN - 1745-6584
pISSN - 0017-467X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1745-6584.1976.tb03093.x
Subject(s) - oil spill , aquifer , water table , environmental science , hydrology (agriculture) , petroleum engineering , groundwater , geology , oil field , geotechnical engineering
Fuel oil, underlying approximately four acres, was discovered floating on the water table beneath oil products' storage tanks. The oil, of unknown origin, originally was observed discharging to a river adjacent to the storage tank area from an abandoned clay tile. Approximately 35,000 gallons (132,500 liters) of oil were intercepted and contained prior to the field investigation by borings. Hantush's (1968) theory for the formation of a fresh‐water lens in an unconfined saline aquifer was used to examine the decay of an oil lens resulting from a catastrophic oil spill at the site. The theory indicated that too much time had elapsed from the first detection of oil at the surface to the collection of subsurface information to make it feasible to speculate on the precise nature of the spill event–catastrophic or a slow leak. Application of the theory and consideration of the ground‐water hydrology of the site did make it possible to identify the probable source area of the spill. Analysis of the flow system also assisted in the selection of the appropriate collection system to clean‐up the spill. Subsequent to the boring program, an electrical resistivity survey was conducted to test the feasibility of delineating the extent of the subsurface oil by this method. Only modest success was achieved, apparently because of the thinness of the oil‐bearing zone.