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Characterization of a TCE DNAPL Zone in Alluvium by Partitioning Tracers
Author(s) -
Young C. M.,
Jackson R. E.,
Jin M.,
Londergan J. T.,
Mariner P. E.,
Pope G. A.,
Anderson F. J.,
Houk T.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
groundwater monitoring and remediation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 47
eISSN - 1745-6592
pISSN - 1069-3629
DOI - 10.1111/j.1745-6592.1999.tb00190.x
Subject(s) - aquifer , alluvium , saturation (graph theory) , hydrology (agriculture) , residual , geology , tracer , environmental remediation , vadose zone , groundwater , environmental science , soil science , geomorphology , soil water , geotechnical engineering , contamination , ecology , physics , mathematics , algorithm , combinatorics , computer science , nuclear physics , biology
Partitioning interwell tracer tests (PITT) were used ID determine the spatial distribution and volume of residual trichloroethene (TCE) present in alluvium beneath the Portsmouth Gaseous Diffusion Plain in southern Ohio. Its first use at this site was in support of the design of a surfactant flood to remove the residual DNAPL (dense nonaqueous phase liquids) from the alluvial aquifer. The second application assessed the performance of the surfactant flood. The average DNAPL saturation in the first PITT was 0.1 to 0.2% in a swept pore volume of 4500 gallons (17.000 L). A second PITT was undertaken following the surfactant flood and yielded an average residual saturation of 0.06% in a swept pore volume of 3400 gallons (13.000 L), the reduction in pore volume being due to the confinement of the tracers to the lower sand and gravel unit of the alluvium. The design, operation, and analysis of the two PM Is provided strong evidence of a buried channel that controls the spatial distribution of the residual TCI: DNAPL in the basal sand and gravel aquifer and must be considered in the eventual full remediation of this aquifer.