LONG-TERM AS/SVE FOR PETROLEUM REMOVAL IN LOW-PERMEABILITY PIEDMONT SAPROLITE

A 3.5-year pilot test of air sparging/soil vapor extraction (AS/SVE) was carried out to determine whether the heterogeneity of the Piedmont saprolite would allow adequate soil vapor velocities and effective vapor-phase extraction rates for petroleum hydrocarbon (PHC) remediation. The objectives were to compare: (1) the effectiveness of pulsed SVE versus pulsed AS/SVE operation; (2) benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (BTEX) versus PHC removal; and (3) biological versus physical removal of PHC. Stack exhaust gas, SVE wells, and soil vapor probes were monitored for total combustible hydrocarbons (TCH), BTEX, O2 ,C O 2, temperature, and flow rate using handheld meters and gas chromatography. The majority of contaminant recov- ered was removed from the vadose zone via SVE. BTEX and TCH were both effectively removed from the more-permeable and highly contaminated unsaturated-saturated zone interface. Bioremediation accounted for 23% of total removal. Overall, the AS/SVE system physically removed an estimated 18,800 kg of PHC and 5,300 g of BTEX with an average rate of 70 kg d 21 and 0.4 g d 21 , respectively, which was consistent with other AS/SVE studies in sandy media.

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