Grantee Research Project Results

Strategies for Cost-Effective In-situ Mixing of Contaminants and Additives in Bioremediation

EPA Grant Number: R828772C002
Subproject: this is subproject number 002 , established and managed by the Center Director under grant R828772
(EPA does not fund or establish subprojects; EPA awards and manages the overall grant for this center).
Center: Solutions for Energy, AiR, Climate and Health Center (SEARCH)
Center Director: Bell, Michelle L.
Title: Strategies for Cost-Effective In-situ Mixing of Contaminants and Additives in Bioremediation
Investigators: Kitanidis, Peter K. , Criddle, Craig C.
Institution: Stanford University
EPA Project Officer: Aja, Hayley
Project Period: September 1, 2001 through August 31, 2003
Project Amount: Refer to main center abstract for funding details.
RFA: Hazardous Substance Research Centers - HSRC (2001) Recipients Lists
Research Category: Hazardous Waste/Remediation , Land and Waste Management

Objective:

To develop and evaluate cost-effective methods of chemical addition and mixing for in-situ remediation. Such methods will employ recirculation units, pairs of extraction-injection wells, sparging systems, biocurtains, and time- and space-sequenced operations. The research will evaluate specific methods of chemical delivery and mixing and compare them on the same basis in terms of effectiveness and cost. This study will produce a set of tools and guidelines for the design of effective in-situ delivery and mixing systems. The PIs will field test developed methodologies at their own sites and/or collaborate with other researchers who design field-scale in-situ remediation projects.

Approach:

This study will synthesize available knowledge and previous experience about flow, transport, and biochemical reactions; and will utilize results from field-scale studies at sites such as Schoolcraft, Michigan. The overall approach consists of: (1) identification of key remediation problems, such as bioremediation of organic solvents or metals, (2) development of a suite of remediation strategies based on biogeochemical process understanding, (3) assessment of the feasibility and cost of innovative chemical delivery and mixing methods using mathematical modeling of geologic-media hydrodynamics, transport, and biogeochemical relations together with cost-based objective functions.

Expected Results:

Effective and economical methods for chemical delivery and mixing are the key to successful field-scale application of remediation technologies. Belowground reactors deserve special attention because they are more complex, less well characterized, and more difficult to control and manipulate than engineered aboveground reactors. At the field scale, the effectiveness of the mixing schemes is as important as the effectiveness of the underlying remediation process itself. The proposed work will develop new methods for chemical delivery and mixing and will provide guidelines on the scope of existing and new methods. Most importantly, this study will advance the development of a scientific theory and methodology for the design of in-situ reactors.

Supplemental Keywords:

In-situ bioremediation, groundwater, chemical delivery, mixing, biostimulation, cost-benefit, risk management., RFA, Scientific Discipline, Waste, Hazardous, Remediation, Environmental Chemistry, Hazardous Waste, Biochemistry, Bioremediation, Environmental Engineering, biostimulation, heavy metals, biotransformation, geochemistry, in-situ biotransformation, field scale studies, in-situ bioremediation, hazardous waste treatment, fate and transport modeling, biodegradation, in situ remediation, extraction of metals, sparging systems, mathematical models, metal compounds, metal wastes, organic solvents, mathmatical modeling, field studies, chlorinated solvents, recirculation

Progress and Final Reports:

2002 Progress Report

Final

Main Center Abstract and Reports:

R828772    Solutions for Energy, AiR, Climate and Health Center (SEARCH)

Subprojects under this Center: (EPA does not fund or establish subprojects; EPA awards and manages the overall grant for this center).
R828772C001 Developing and Optimizing Biotransformation Kinetics for the Bio- remediation of Trichloroethylene at NAPL Source Zone Concentrations
R828772C002 Strategies for Cost-Effective In-situ Mixing of Contaminants and Additives in Bioremediation
R828772C003 Aerobic Cometabolism of Chlorinated Aliphatic Hydrocarbon Compounds with Butane-Grown Microorganisms
R828772C004 Chemical, Physical, and Biological Processes at the Surface of Palladium Catalysts Under Groundwater Treatment Conditions
R828772C006 Development of the Push-Pull Test to Monitor Bioaugmentation with Dehalogenating Cultures
R828772C007 Development and Evaluation of Field Sensors for Monitoring Bioaugmentation with Anaerobic Dehalogenating Cultures for In-Situ Treatment of TCE
R828772C008 Training and Technology Transfer
R828772C009 Technical Outreach Services for Communities (TOSC) and Technical Assistance to Brownfields Communities (TAB) Programs
R828772C010 Aerobic Cometabolism of Chlorinated Ethenes by Microorganisms that Grow on Organic Acids and Alcohols
R828772C011 Development and Evaluation of Field Sensors for Monitoring Anaerobic Dehalogenation after Bioaugmentation for In Situ Treatment of PCE and TCE
R828772C012 Continuous-Flow Column Studies of Reductive Dehalogenation with Two Different Enriched Cultures: Kinetics, Inhibition, and Monitoring of Microbial Activity
R828772C013 Novel Methods for Laboratory Measurement of Transverse Dispersion in Porous Media
R828772C014 The Role of Micropore Structure in Contaminant Sorption and Desorption