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Investigation of the Effectiveness of Electrical Resistivity Tomography in Monitoring and Detecting Hydrocarbon Contamination in Sandy Soil at Various Moisture: Pilot Scale

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Abstract

Hydrocarbon contaminants can enter the soil for various reasons and in addition to the potential for groundwater pollution, altering the characteristics of the soil, endangering already-existing structures on the soil, and endangering the health of living organisms, they can remain in the soil for a long time and have long-term effects on the environment. Therefore, it is crucial to manage, control, and treat the contaminated soil. To detect and monitor the contamination is a prerequisite of management and planning for the control and treatment of contaminated soil. One technique that has established its effectiveness in this area is electrical resistivity tomography (ERT). Despite the previous studies that demonstrate the proper performance of this method in identifying crude oil contamination in the soil, the accuracy of this method in identifying different concentrations of contaminants and the impact of soil moisture on the performance of this method remain two open questions that require further research. In this study, laboratory tests were conducted to answers to the two concerns mentioned above as well as the potential for developing an alternative technique of sampling and chemical testing to determine the contaminant concentration based on one-dimensional electrical resistivity. The findings of this study demonstrated that, despite this method’s good performance in locating crude oil contamination in sandy soil, it cannot be used to locate pollutants with low concentrations. Additionally, 1D tests along with the pseudo-section obtained from ERT were suggested as a suitable alternative (cheaper and faster) for sampling and chemical tests to identify the pollutant concentration and also the increase in soil moisture increases the minimum pollutant concentration that can be detected by this method.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Water and Environmental Measurement and Monitoring Laboratory, School of Civil Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran

    Sohrab Amani, Amirhossein Keshtdar & Reza Ghiassi

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  1. Sohrab Amani
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  2. Amirhossein Keshtdar
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  3. Reza Ghiassi
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Correspondence to Sohrab Amani.

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Amani, S., Keshtdar, A. & Ghiassi, R. Investigation of the Effectiveness of Electrical Resistivity Tomography in Monitoring and Detecting Hydrocarbon Contamination in Sandy Soil at Various Moisture: Pilot Scale. Water Air Soil Pollut 235, 175 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-024-06984-y

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