Abstract
A groundwater flow and mass transport model tested the capability of shallow excavations filled with coarse, reactive media to remediate a hypothetical unconfined aquifer with a maximum saturated thickness of 5 m. Modeled as contaminant sinks, the rectangular excavations were 10 m downgradient of an initial contaminant plume originating from a source at the top of the aquifer. The initial plume was approximately 259 m long, 23 m wide, and 5 m thick, with a downgradient tip located approximately 100 m upgradient of the site boundary. The smallest trench capable of preventing offsite migration was 11 m long (measured perpendicular to groundwater flow), 4 m wide (measured parallel to groundwater flow), and 3 m deep. Results of this study suggest that shallow trenches filled with coarse filter media that partially penetrate unconfined aquifers may be a viable alternative for remediating contaminated groundwater at some sites.
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The University of North Texas provided office space and computing resources for this project.
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Hudak, P.F. Remediating Contaminant Plumes in Groundwater with Shallow Excavations Containing Coarse Reactive Media. Environmental Management 61, 304–309 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-017-0977-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-017-0977-2