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Use of a reactive transport model to describe reductive dechlorination (RD) as a remediation design tool: application at a CAH-contaminated site

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Abstract

In this paper, a numerical model is presented that is capable of describing the complex set of biochemical processes that occur in chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbon (CAH)-contaminated groundwater when an exogenous electron donor is added. The reactive pattern is based on the degradation pathways of both chlorinated ethanes and ethenes, and it includes electron donor production (H2 and acetate) from the fermentation of an organic substrate as well as rate-limiting processes related to electron acceptor competition. Coupling of the kinetic model to a convection–dispersion module is described. The calibration phase was carried out using data obtained at a real CAH-contaminated site in the north of Italy. Model simulations of different application scenarios are presented to draw general conclusions on the effectiveness of reductive dechlorination (RD) as a possible cleanup strategy. Early outcomes indicate that cleanup targets can only be achieved if source longevity is reduced. Therefore, metabolic RD is expected to produce beneficial effects because it is known to induce bioenhanced degradation and transformation of CAHs.

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Acknowledgment

This research was financially supported by the European Union (European Commission, FP7 contract no. 213161).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil, Building and Environmental Engineering, Sapienza University of Rome, Via Eudossiana 18, 00184, Rome, Italy

    Paolo Viotti & Paolo Roberto Di Palma

  2. IRSA-CNR Water Research Institute-National Research Council, Via Salaria km 29.300, Monterotondo, Rome, Italy

    Federico Aulenta

  3. ENEA Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development, RC Casaccia, Via Anguillarese 301, S. Maria Galeria, 00123, Rome, Italy

    Antonella Luciano

  4. Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Catania, Viale Andrea Doria 6, 95125, Catania, Italy

    Giuseppe Mancini

  5. Department of Chemistry, Sapienza University of Rome, P.le aldo Moro 5, 00185, Rome, Italy

    Marco Petrangeli Papini

Authors
  1. Paolo Viotti
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  2. Paolo Roberto Di Palma
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  3. Federico Aulenta
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  4. Antonella Luciano
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  5. Giuseppe Mancini
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  6. Marco Petrangeli Papini
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Correspondence to Paolo Viotti.

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Responsible editor: Michael Matthies

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Viotti, P., Di Palma, P.R., Aulenta, F. et al. Use of a reactive transport model to describe reductive dechlorination (RD) as a remediation design tool: application at a CAH-contaminated site. Environ Sci Pollut Res 21, 1514–1527 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-013-2035-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-013-2035-9

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