Evaluation of volatilization as a natural attenuation pathway for MTBE

Volatilization and diffusion through the unsaturated zone can be an important pathway for natural attenuation remediation of methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) at gasoline spill sites. The significance of this pathway depends primarily on the distribution of immiscible product within the unsaturated zone and the relative magnitude of aqueous-phase advection (ground water recharge) to gaseous-phase diffusion. At a gasoline spill site in Laurel Bay, South Carolina, rates of MTBE volatilization from ground water downgradient from the source are estimated by analyzing the distribution of MTBE in the unsaturated zone above a solute plume. Volatilization rates of MTBE from ground water determined by transport modeling ranged from 0.0020 to 0.0042 g m(-2)/year, depending on the assumed rate of ground water recharge. Although diffusive conditions at the Laurel Bay site are favorable for volatilization, mass loss of MTBE is insignificant over the length (230 m) of the solute plume. Based on this analysis, significant volatilization of MTBE from ground water downgradient from source areas at other sites is not likely. In contrast, model results indicate that volatilization coupled with diffusion to the atmosphere could be a significant mass loss pathway for MTBE in source areas where residual product resides above the capillary zone. Although not documented, mass loss of MTBE at the Laurel Bay site due to volatilization and diffusion to the atmosphere are predicted to be two to three times greater than mass loading of MTBE to ground water due to dissolution and recharge. This result would imply that volatilization in the source zone may be the critical natural attenuation pathway for MTBE at gasoline spill sites, especially when considering capillary zone limitations on volatilization of MTBE from ground water and the relative recalcitrance of MTBE to biodegradation.     

Free-product plume distribution and recovery modeling prediction in a diesel-contaminated volcanic aquifer

Light non-aqueous phase liquids (LNAPL) represent one of the most serious problems in aquifers contaminated with petroleum hydrocarbons liquids. To design an appropriate remediation strategy it is essential to understand the behavior of the plume. The aim of this paper is threefold: (1) to characterize the fluid distribution of an LNAPL plume detected in a volcanic low-conductivity aquifer (∼0.4 m/day from slug tests interpretation), (2) to simulate the recovery processes of the free-product contamination and (3) to evaluate the primary recovery efficiency of the following alternatives: skimming, dual-phase extraction, Bioslurping and multi-phase extraction wells. The API/Charbeneau analytical model was used to investigate the recovery feasibility based on the geological properties and hydrogeological conditions with a multi-phase (water, air, LNAPL) transport approach in the vadose zone. The modeling performed in this research, in terms of LNAPL distribution in the subsurface, show that oil saturation is 7% in the air–oil interface, with a maximum value of 70% in the capillary fringe. Equilibrium between water and LNAPL phases is reached at a depth of 1.80 m from the air–oil interface. On the other hand, the LNAPL recovery model results suggest a remarkable enhancement of the free-product recovery when simultaneous extra-phase extraction was simulated from wells, in addition to the LNAPL lens. Recovery efficiencies were 27%, 65%, 66% and 67% for skimming, dual-phase extraction, Bioslurping and multi-phase extraction, respectively. During a 3-year simulation, skimmer wells and multi-phase extraction showed the lowest and highest LNAPL recovery rates, with expected values from 207 to 163 and 2305 to 707 l-LNAPL/day, respectively. At a field level we are proposing a well distribution arrangement that alternates pairs of dual-phase well-Bioslurping well. This not only improves the recovery of the free-product plume, but also pumps the dissolve plume and enhances in situ biodegradation in the vadose zone. Thus, aquifer and soil remediation can be achieved at a shorter time. Rough calculations suggest that LNAPL can be recovered at an approximate cost of $6–$10/l.     

Multifluid flow in bedded porous media: laboratory experiments and numerical simulations

Understanding light nonaqueous-phase liquid (LNAPL) movement in heterogeneous vadose environments is important for effective remediation design. We investigated LNAPL movement near a sloping fine- over coarse-grained textural interface, forming a capillary barrier. LNAPL flow experiments were performed in a glass chamber (50 cm×60 cm×1.0 cm) using two silica sands (12/20 and 30/40 sieve sizes). Variable water saturations near the textural interface were generated by applying water uniformly to the sand surface at various flow rates. A model LNAPL (Soltrol® 220) was subsequently released at two locations at the sand surface. Visible light transmission was used to quantitatively determine water saturations prior to LNAPL release and to observe LNAPL flow paths. Numerical simulations were performed using the Subsurface Transport Over Multiple Phases (STOMP) simulator, employing two nonhysteretic relative permeability–saturation–pressure (k–S–P) models. LNAPL movement strongly depended on the water saturation in the fine-grained sand layer above the textural interface. In general, reasonable agreement was found between observed and predicted water saturations near the textural interface and LNAPL flow paths. Discrepancies between predictions based on the van Genuchten/Mualem (VGM) and Brooks–Corey/Burdine (BCB) k–S–P models existed in the migration speed of the simulated LNAPL plume and the LNAPL flow patterns at high water saturation above the textural interface. In both instances, predictions based on the BCB model agreed better with experimental observations than predictions based on the VGM model. The results confirm the critical role water saturation plays in determining LNAPL movement in heterogeneous vadose zone environments and that accurate prediction of LNAPL flow paths depends on the careful selection of an appropriate k–S–P model.     

Analytical Solutions for Free-Hydrocarbon Recovery Using Skimmer and Dual-Pump wells

Accidental release of petroleum hydrocarbons to the subsurface may occur through spills around refineries, leaking pipelines, storage tanks, or other sources. If the spill is large, the hydrocarbon liquids may eventually reach a water table and spread laterally in a pancake-like lens. Hydrocarbons that exist as a separate phase are termed light nonaqueous phase liquids (LNAPLs). The portion of the LNAPL that is mobile, not entrapped as residual saturation, is termed "free product."
This paper presents new analytical solutions for the design of long-term free-product recovery from aquifers with skimmer, single- and dual-pump wells. The solutions are for steady-state flow, based on the assumption of vertical equilibrium, and include the effect of coning of LNAPL, air, and water on flow. The solutions are valid for soils of large hydraulic conductivity where the effect of capillary pressure on coning is small.
The results show how to estimate the maximum rate of inflow of LNAPL for skimmer wells, i.e., wells in which LNAPL is recovered with little or no water production. The paper also shows how to calculate the increase in LNAPL recovery when water is pumped by single- or dual-pump wells. A simple equation is given that can be used to adjust the water rate to avoid smearing of the LNAPL below the water table.     

Joint interpretation of geoelectrical and volatile organic compounds data: a case study in a hydrocarbons contaminated urban site

As a result of a gasoline spill in an urban area, Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT), Electromagnetic Profiling (EMP) and Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) methods were used in order to define the contamination plume and to optimize the drilling and soil sampling activities. The VOC anomalies (recent contamination) indicated that a gas station located at the study site is an active contamination source. The mature contaminated zones defined by ERT and EMP methods corresponded with low resistivity anomalies due to degradation process of the hydrocarbons contaminants. The ERT, EMP and VOC results were integrated on a map, allowing the final configuration of contamination plumes and the optimization of drilling and soil/free-product sampling. Laboratory analyses of free-product samples suggest the existence of more than one contamination event in the site, with the presence of recent and degraded-hydrocarbon contaminants classified in the gasoline range. This study shows the advantages of joint application of ERT, EMP and VOC methods in sites with active contamination source, where the existence of recent and mature contaminants in subsoil is assumed.     

LNAPL Volume Calculation: Parameter Estimation by Nonlinear Regression of Saturation Profiles

An estimation of the volume of light nonaqueous phase liquids (LNAPL) is often required during site assessment, remedial design, or litigation. LNAPL volume can be estimated by a strictly empirical approach whereby core samples, distributed throughout the vertical and lateral extent of LNAPL, are analyzed for LNAPL content, and these data are then integrated to compute a volume. Alternatively, if the LNAPL has obtained vertical equilibrium, the thickness of LNAPL in monitoring wells can be used to calculate of LNAPL in monitoring wells can be used to calculate LNAPL volume at the well locations if appropriate soil and LNAPL properties can be estimated.
A method is described for estimating key soil and LNAPL properties by nonlinear regression of vertical profiles of LNAPL saturation. The methods is relatively fast, cost effective, and amenable to quantitative analysis of uncertainty. Optionally, the method allows statistical determination of best-fit values for the Van Genuchten capillary parameters (n, α_oil-water and α_oil-air), residual water saturation and ANAPL density. The sensitivity of the method was investigated by fitting field LNAPL saturation profiles and then determining the variation in misfit (mean square residual) as a function of parameter value for each parameter. Using field data from a sandy aquifer, the fitting statistics were found to be highly sensitive to LNAPL density, α_oil-water and α_oil-air moderately sensitive to the Van Genuchten n value, and weakly sensitive to residual water saturation. The regression analysis also provides information that can be used to estimate uncertainty in the estimated parameters, which can then be used to estimate uncertainty in calculated values of specific volume.     

222Rn as Natural Tracer for LNAPL Recovery in a Crude Oil‐Contaminated Aquifer

The objective of this study was to investigate whether ²²²Rn in groundwater can be used as a tracer for light non‐aqueous phase liquid (LNAPL) quantification at a field site treated by dual‐phase LNAPL removal. After the break of a pipeline, 5 ha of soil in the nature reserve Coussouls de Crau in southern France was contaminated by 5100 m³ of crude oil. Part of this oil seeped into the underlying gravel aquifer and formed a floating oil body of about 3.9 ha. The remediation consists of plume management by hydraulic groundwater barriers and LNAPL extraction in the source zone. ²²²Rn measurements were performed in 21 wells in and outside the source zone during 15 months. In uncontaminated groundwater, the radon activity was relatively constant and remained always >11 Bq/L. The variability of radon activity measurements in wells affected by the pump‐and‐skim system was consistent with the measurements in wells that were not impacted by the system. The mean activities in wells in the source zone were, in general, significantly lower than in wells upgradient of the source zone, owing to partitioning of ²²²Rn into the oil phase. The lowest activities were found in zones with high non‐aqueous phase liquid (NAPL) recovery. LNAPL saturations around each recovery well were furthermore calculated during a period of high groundwater level, using a laboratory‐determined crude oil–water partitioning coefficient of 38.5 ± 2.9. This yielded an estimated volume of residual crude oil of 309 ± 93 m³ below the capillary fringe. We find that ²²²Rn is a useful and cheap groundwater tracer for finding zones of good LNAPL recovery in an aquifer treated by dual‐phase LNAPL removal, but that quantification of NAPL saturation using Rn is highly uncertain.     

Application of Four Measurement Techniques to Understand Natural Source Zone Depletion Processes at an LNAPL Site

There are several key data gaps in our understanding of Natural Source Zone Depletion (NSZD) processes at sites impacted by light nonaqueous phase liquid (LNAPL), and quantifying NSZD rates can be challenging due to the inherent differences in measurement methods. In this study, four different NSZD measurement methods (oxygen influx measured by the Gradient Method, long-term carbon dioxide efflux measured with Carbon Traps, instantaneous carbon dioxide efflux measured with Dynamic Closed Chambers (DCC LI-COR), and the long-term heat flux from biodegradation measured by Thermal NSZD monitoring), as well as LNAPL composition and dissolved gas sampling, were applied at a site in Southern California. These techniques were used to evaluate key questions such as: (1) how do different NSZD rate measurement methods compare, and what causes variability in NSZD results?; (2) to what extent NSZD processes are occurring in LNAPL within the saturated zone?; and (3) how is NSZD related to LNAPL composition change over time? Carbon Traps and Thermal NSZD monitoring measurement methods provided the most consistent NSZD data at this geologically heterogeneous site, with two location average NSZD rates of 540 and 480 gal/acre/year, respectively. Overall, comparisons of NSZD rates between methods were challenging due to different measurement timeframes, significant temporal and spatial heterogeneity, and operational challenges with two of the NSZD methods. Finally, samples of subsurface LNAPL were collected for analysis in 2007 and 2016; results indicated that diesel-range constituents were already very degraded and anaerobic degradation of gasoline-range constituents was ongoing. A LNAPL depletion model (Douglas et al. 1996) applied to the measured LNAPL composition change appeared to greatly overestimate the amount of LNAPL depletion compared to the measured NSZD rate, but did provide an independent semiqualitative line of evidence that LNAPL was being depleted by active NSZD processes at the site.     

Hydrocarbon Vapor Diffusion in Intact Core Sleeves

The diffusion of 2,2,4-trimethylpentane (TMP) and 2,2,5-trimethylhexane (TMH) vapors put of residually contaminated sandy soil from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) field research site at Traverse City, Michigan, was measured and modeled. The headspace of an intact core sleeve sample was swept with nitrogen gas to simulate the diffusive release of hydrocarbon vapors from residual aviation gasoline in and immediately above the capillary fringe to a soil-venting air flow in the unsaturated zone. The resulting steady-state profile was modeled using existing diffusivity and air porosity estimates in a balance of diffusive flux and a first order source term. The source strength, which was calibrated with the observed flux of 2,2,4-TMP leaving the sleeve, varied with the residual gasoline remaining in the core, but was independent of the headspace sweep flow rate. This finding suggested that lower soil-venting air flow rates were in principle as effective as higher air flow rates in venting LNAPL vapors from contaminated soils. The saturated vapor concentration ratio of 2,2,4-TMP to 2,2,5-TMH decreased from 6.6 to 3.5 over the duration of the experiments in an expression of distillation effects. The vertical profile model was tested against sample port data in four separate experiments for both species, yielding mean errors ranging from 0 to—24 percent in magnitude.     

LNAPL Distribution in a Cohesionless Soil: A Field Investigation and Cryogenic Sampler

Lighter-than-water Non-Aqueous Phase Liquids (LNAPLs), such as jet fuels or gasolines, are common contaminants of soils and ground water. However, the total volume and distribution of an LNAPL is difficult to accurately determine during a site investigation. LNAPL that is entrapped in the saturated zone due to fluctuating water table conditions is particularly difficult to quantify. Yet, the amount of entrapped product in the saturated zone is theoretically higher, per volume of soil, than the residual product in the unsaturated zone, and small amounts of LNAPL in the saturated zone can contaminate large volumes of ground water.
The only method currently available to quantify the amount of LNAPL is direct soil-core sampling combined with laboratory analysis of the fluid extracted from the soil cores. However, direct sampling of saturated ground water systems with conventional samplers presents a number of problems. In this study, a new sampler was developed that can be used to retrieve undisturbed soil and pore fluid samples from below the water table in cohesionless soils. The sampler uses carbon dioxide to cool the bottom of a saturated soil sample in situ to near freezing. Results of a field study where a prototype sampler was tested demonstrate the usefulness of a cryogenic sampler and show that the amount of LNAPL entrapped below the water table can be a significant part of the total LNAPL in the soil.     

Field Study of Vertical Screening Distance Criteria for Vapor Intrusion of Ethylene Dibromide

Several regulatory agencies recommend screening petroleum vapor intrusion (PVI) sites based on vertical screening distance between a petroleum hydrocarbon source in soil or groundwater and a building foundation. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) indicate the risk of PVI is minimal at buildings that are separated by more than 6 feet (1.8 m) from a dissolved-phase source and 15 feet (4.6 m) from a light nonaqueous phase liquid (LNAPL) source. This vertical screening distance method is not, however, recommended at sites with leaded gasoline sources containing ethylene dibromide (EDB) because of a lack of field data to document EDB attenuation in the vadose zone. To help address this gap, depth-discrete soil-gas samples were collected at a leaded gasoline release site in Sobieski, Minnesota (USA). The maximum concentration of EDB in groundwater (175 μg/L) at the site was high relative to those observed at other leaded gasoline release sites. Soil gas was analyzed for EDB using a modification of U.S. EPA Method TO-14A that achieved analytical detection limits below the U.S. EPA Vapor Intrusion Screening Level (VISL) for EDB based on a 10⁻⁶ cancer risk (<0.16 μg/m³). Concentrations of EDB in soil gas above LNAPL reached as high as 960 μg/m³ and decreased below the VISL within a source-separation distance of 7 feet. This result coupled with BioVapor model predictions of EDB concentrations indicate that vertical screening distances recommended by regulatory agencies at PVI sites are generally applicable for EDB over the range of anticipated source concentrations and soil types at most sites.     

The Utility of Multiple-Completion Monitoring Wells for Describing a Solvent Plume

At a study site in the midwestern United States, multiple-completion wells demonstrated that a vertical hydraulic gradient was responsible for the contamination pattern exhibited by chlorinated solvent plumes. The typical pattern consisted of little or no contamination in the upper portion of the aquifer with concentrations increasing with depth. When ground water contamination was discovered in an unexpected portion of the site, water level elevations and contaminant distribution data obtained from multiple-completion wells resulted in identification of the source location. The well eventually determined to be located in the source area displayed contaminant levels much higher in the upper zone of the aquifer — the opposite contamination pattern of other on-site wells. Such results indicated that the spill had occurred near this location and that solvent residing along the capillary fringe was continuing to contaminate the aquifer.     

轻非水相液体污染过程的高密度电阻率成像法室内监测

为探讨高密度电阻率成像法监测多孔介质中轻非水相液体迁移过程的有效性,本文通过三维砂槽进行了非饱和带中轻非水相液体的污染试验,并利用高密度电阻率成像法进行了同步的动态监测.试验之后,将砂槽层层挖开,通过数码成像,获取了污染区域的实际范围与形状.结果表明,由高密度电阻率成像法圈定的污染区域在范围与形状上都与实际的结果比较接近,并可通过三维电阻率相对值的时间变化明显的看出轻非水相液体的污染过程.这说明利用高密度电阻率成像法对非饱和多孔介质中轻非水相液体的空间分布范围进行圈定并监测其迁移过程是完全可行的.     

Small Purge Method to Sample Vapor from Groundwater Monitoring Wells Screened Across the Water Table

Groundwater monitoring wells are present at most hydrocarbon release sites that are being assessed for cleanup. If screened across the vadose zone, these wells provide an opportunity to collect vapor samples that can be used in the evaluation of vapor movement and biodegradation processes occurring at such sites. This paper presents a low purge volume method (modified after that developed by the U.S. EPA) for sampling vapor from monitoring wells that is easy to implement and can provide an assessment of the soil gas total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) and O₂ concentrations at the base of the vadose zone. As a result, the small purge method allows for sampling of vapor from monitoring wells to support petroleum vapor intrusion (PVI) risk assessment. The small purge volume method was field tested at the Hal's service station site in Green River, Utah. This site is well‐known for numerous soil gas measurements containing high O₂ and high TPH vapor concentrations in the same samples which is inconsistent with well‐accepted biodegradation models for the vapor pathway. Using the low purge volume method, monitoring wells were sampled over, upgradient, and downgradient of the light nonaqueous phase liquid (LNAPL) footprint. Results from our testing at Hal's show that vapor from monitoring wells over LNAPL contained very low O₂ and high TPH concentrations. In contrast, vapor from monitoring wells not over LNAPL contained high O₂ and low TPH concentrations. The results of this study show that a low purge volume method is consistent with biodegradation models especially for sampling at sites where low permeability soils exist in and around a LNAPL source zone.     

Electrical resistance tomography experiments at the Oregon Graduate Institute

Three controlled experiments were conducted at the Oregon Graduate Institute (OGI) with the purpose of evaluating electrical resistance tomography for imaging underground processes associated with in-situ site assessment and remediation. The OGI facilities are unique: a double-wall tank 10 m square and 5 m deep, filled with river bottom sediments and instrumented for geophysical and hydrological studies. At this facility, liquid contaminants could be released into the confined soil at a scale sufficiently large to represent real-world physical phenomena.In the first test, images of electrical resistivity were made before and during a controlled spill of gasoline into a sandy soil. The primary purpose was to determine if electrical resistivity images could detect the hydrocarbon in either the vadose or saturated zone. Definite changes in electrical resistivity were observed in both the vadose and saturated soils. The effects were an increase in resistivity of as much as 10% above pre-release values. A single resistive anomaly was imaged, directly below the release point, principally within the vadose zone but extending below the phreatic surface. The anomaly remained identifiable in tomograms taken two days after the release ended with clear indications of lateral spreading along the water table.The second test involved electrical resistance measurements before, during, and after air sparging in a saturated soil. The primary purpose was to determine if the electrical images could be used to detect and delineate the extent of the zone influenced by sparging. The images showed an increase of about 20% in resistivity over background values within the sparged zone and the extent of the imaged zone agreed with that inferred from other information.Electrical resistivity tomography measurements were made under a simulated oil storage tank in the third test. Comparison of images taken before and during separate releases of brine and water showed effects of changes induced by the water or brine. The simulated leak and its location were imaged as a conductive anomaly centered near the point of origin and were observed to spread with time during the release.     

Predicting Vertical LNAPL Distribution in the Subsurface under the Fluctuating Water Table Effect

The present study proposes a methodology for predicting the vertical light nonaqueous-phase liquids (LNAPLs) distribution within an aquifer by considering the influence of water table fluctuations. The LNAPL distribution is predicted by combining (1) information on air/LNAPL and LNAPL/water interface elevations with (2) the initial elevation of the water table without LNAPL effect. Data used in the present study were collected during groundwater monitoring undertaken over a period of 4 months at a LNAPL-impacted observation well. In this study, the water table fluctuations raised the free LNAPL in the subsurface to an elevation of 206.63 m, while the lowest elevation was 205.70 m, forming a thickness of 0.93 m of LNAPL-impacted soil. Results show that the apparent LNAPL thickness in the observation well is found to be three times greater than the actual free LNAPL thickness in soil; a finding that agrees with previous studies reporting that apparent LNAPL thickness in observation wells typically exceeds the free LNAPL thickness within soil by a factor estimated to range between 2 and 10. The present study provides insights concerning the transient variation of LNAPL distribution within the subsurface and highlights the capability of the proposed methodology to mathematically predict the actual LNAPL thickness in the subsurface, without the need to conduct laborious field tests. Practitioners can use the proposed methodology to determine by how much the water table should be lowered, through pumping, to isolate the LNAPL-impacted soil within the unsaturated zone, which can then be subjected to in situ vadose zone remedial treatment.     

LNAPL Recovery Endpoints: Lessons Learnt Through Modeling,Experiments, and Field Trials

It is important to estimate what light nonaqueous phase liquid (LNAPL) recovery can be practicably achieved from subsurface environments. Over the last decade, research to address this included a broad field program, laboratory measurements and experimentation, and modeling approaches. Here, we consolidate key findings from the research in the context of current literature and understanding, with a focus on a well-validated, multiphase multicomponent modeling approach to achieve estimates of reasonable endpoints for LNAPL recovery. Simple analytical models can provide approximate saturation distributions and estimates of LNAPL recoverability via transmissivity approximation, but are insufficient to predict LNAPL saturation- and composition-based recovery endpoints for various recovery technologies. This is because they cannot account for multiphase, multicomponent fate and transport and key processes such as hysteresis. Recent advances to improve estimates of the fraction of recoverable LNAPL and its transmissivity are summarized. These advances include further development and application of a well-validated model to characterize active LNAPL recovery endpoints. We present key factors that affect the determination of LNAPL recovery endpoints, and outline how recovery endpoints are affected by natural source zone depletion (NSZD—currently gaining acceptance as a LNAPL remediation option). Major factors include geo-physical characteristics of the formation, magnitude of an LNAPL release and partitioning properties of the key LNAPL constituents of concern. Based on the capabilities of the validated model, the paper also provides a basis to optimize LNAPL recovery efforts.     

Evaluating an Analytical Model to Predict Subsurface LNAPL Distributions and Transmissivity from Current and Historic Fluid Levels in Groundwater Wells: Comparing Results to Numerical Simulations

A recent analytical model predicts free, entrapped, and residual LNAPL saturations and the LNAPL transmissivity in the subsurface from current and historic fluid levels in groundwater wells. As such, the model accounts for effects of fluid level fluctuations in a well. The model was developed to predict LNAPL specific volumes and transmissivities from current fluid level measurements in wells and either recorded historic fluid level fluctuations in wells or estimates. An assumption is made in the model that the predictions are not dependent on whether the historic highest or lowest fluid level elevations in a well occur first. To test the assumption, we conduct two simulations with a modified multiphase flow numerical code TMVOC that incorporates relative permeability‐saturation‐capillary head relations employed in the model. In one simulation, the initial condition is for fluid levels in a well at the historic highest elevations. In the other simulation, the initial condition is for fluid levels in a well at the historic lowest elevations. We change the boundary conditions so both historical conditions occur followed by generating the current condition. Results from the numerical simulations are compared to model predictions and show the assumption in the analytical model is reasonable. The analytical model can be used to develop/refine conceptual site models and for assessing potential LNAPL recovery endpoints, especially on sites with fluctuating fluid levels in wells.     

Vertical Screening Distance Criteria to Evaluate Vapor Intrusion Risk from 1,2-Dichloroethane (1,2-DCA)

Vapor intrusion (VI) involves migration of volatile contaminants from subsurface through unsaturated soil into overlying buildings. In 2015, the US EPA recommended an approach for screening VI risks associated with gasoline releases from underground storage tank (UST) sites. Additional assessment of the VI risk from petroleum hydrocarbons was deemed unnecessary for buildings separated from vapor sources by more than recommended vertical screening distances. However, these vertical screening distances did not apply to potential VI risks associated with releases of former leaded gasoline containing 1,2-dichloroethane (1,2-DCA), because of a lack of empirical data on the attenuation of 1,2-DCA in soil gas. This study empirically evaluated 144 paired measurements of 1,2-DCA concentrations in soil gas and groundwater collected at 47 petroleum UST sites combined with BioVapor modeling. This included (1) assessing the frequency of 1,2-DCA detections in soil gas below 10⁻⁶ risk-based screening levels at different vertical separation distances and (2) comparing the US EPA recommended vertical screening distances with those predicted by BioVapor modeling. Vertical screening distances were predicted for different soil types using aerobic biodegradation rate constants estimated from the measured soil-gas data combined with conservative estimates of source concentrations. The modeling indicates that the vertical screening distance of 6 feet (1.8 m) recommended for dissolved-phase sources is applicable for 1,2-DCA below certain threshold concentrations in groundwater, while 15 feet (4.6 m) recommended for light nonaqueous phase liquid (LNAPL) sources is applicable for sites with clay and loam soils in the vadose zone, but not sand, if 1,2-DCA concentrations in groundwater exceed 150 μg/L. This dependence of the predicted vertical screening distances on soil type places added emphasis on proper soil characterization for VI screening at sites with 1,2-DCA sources. The soil-gas data suggests that a vertical screening distance of 15 feet (4.6 m) is necessary for both dissolved-phase and LNAPL sources.     

Biomarker responses in pelagic and benthic fish over 1 year following the Hebei Spirit oil spill (Taean, Korea)

After the Hebei Spirit oil spill incident (7th December, 2007) in the west coast of Korea, contamination of biliary PAH metabolite and hepatic biomarkers in a pelagic and a benthic fish was monitored for 1 year. Concentrations of 16 PAHs and alkylated PAHs in fish muscle were highest (22.0 ng/g d.w. for 16 PAHs and 284 ng/g d.w. for alkylated PAHs) at 5 days after the spill and then decreased rapidly to background levels at 11 months after the spill. Fish from the oiled site had elevated biliary PAH metabolite concentrations immediately after the spill; these declined steadily in both species, but were still above reference site concentrations 2 months after the spill. Oiled-site fish showed hepatic CYP 1A induction whose trend closely followed those of biliary PAH metabolite concentrations, implying continuous exposure to PAHs. Brain acetylcholinesterase activity was not related to oil exposure.