A podcast is available on re-engineering traditional remedial processes to treat soils and groundwater in order to make them more cost efficient is available on the Accelerated Remediation Technologies LLC (ART) website.
The podcast, presented by Mohamed Odah, PhD, P.E., first discusses that some traditional remedial technologies have demonstrated mixed results at reducing contamination in soil and groundwater in-situ due to geological, hydrogeological and contaminant physicochemical properties. Many sites impacted with a wide range of contaminants are in need of comprehensive treatment measures that can simultaneously treat constituents including petroleum and chlorinated compounds along with recalcitrant constituents such as MTBE and 1,4 dioxane.
The podcast then goes to describe how the ART process combines in situ air stripping, air sparging, soil vapor extraction, enhanced bioremediation/oxidation and subsurface circulation in an innovative wellhead system. The multiple remediation concepts combined within the ART process are well suited for volatizing organic compounds as well as recalcitrant compounds because the synergistic systems are physically and chemically attacking contaminants on a number of fronts. The multiple, in-well stripping passes results in a high air-to-water contact ratio within the well (via stripping and sparging) which is integral to the physical removal of contamination.
Concurrently, the ART process involves a subsurface circulation process that actively mobilizes residual contamination from the soil matrix and to the well for further treatment by multiple pore volume exchanges. The circulation and extraction processes also actively and continuously provide significant dissolved oxygen boost throughout the radius of influence, enhancing bioremediation of the hydrocarbon compounds.
Several case studies are discussed in the podcast including site specific data that exhibits the ART process efficacy in reducing petroleum and chlorinated contaminants concentrations in a short time while providing overall project cost reductions.
