Flow and Transport of Edible Oil Emulsions for Enhanced Bioremediation
EMSL Project ID
30495
Abstract
Recent studies have shown that edible oil emulsions, including soybean oil, can be used to enhance the biodegradation of contaminant. Edible oil emulsions are relatively immobile and biodegrade slowly under aquifer conditions and a single injection could potentially provide sufficient carbon for long periods of time. In the 100-D Area of the Hanford Site, treatability tests using emulsified vegetable oil are being conducted to test the technology as a potential approach to augment remediation of the chromium plume in the 100-D Area. The modified STOMP code will be used to evaluate the treatability test results in terms of scale-up, including number of wells, type of substrate, operational strategy, and longevity for biostimulation such that costs for full-scale application can be effectively estimated. However, before the model can be used for design, it needs to be tested against results from well-designed experiments. So far, published experiments are rather qualitative and not of sufficient detail to allow a thorough, independent testing and verification of the model. We propose to conduct several column and intermediate-scale experiments in EMSLs Subsurface Flow and Transport Laboratory to allow a scientifically defensible comparison between experiments and model. Good agreement between experiments and model will increase the confidence in the code for use at the field scale.
Project Details
Project type
Large-Scale EMSL Research
Start Date
2008-10-01
End Date
2009-09-30
Status
Closed
Released Data Link
Team
Principal Investigator