| Contents Notes |
"Extracting vapor from soil Is a cost-effective technique for the removal of volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) from contaminated soils. Among the advantages of the soil vapor extraction process are that It minimally disturbs the contaminated soil, It can be constructed from standard equipment, It has been demonstrated at pilot- and field- scale, It can be used to treat larger volumes of soil than can be practically excavated, and It has potential for product recovery. Unfortunately, there are few guidelines for the optimal design, installation, and operation of soil vapor extraction systems. A large number of pilot- and full-scale soil vapor extraction systems have been constructed and studied under a wide range of conditions. The major objectives of the Report summarized here are to critically review available documents that describe current practices and to summarize this information as concisely as possible. A typical vapor extraction system Is briefly described, the experience with existing extraction systems has been reviewed, and Information about each system Is briefly summarized. Soil vapor extraction can be effectively used for removing a wide range of volatile chemicals over a wide range of conditions. The design and operation of this system are flexible enough to allow for rapid changes in operation, thus optimizing the removal of chemicals. Although a number of variables Intuitively affect the rate of chemical extraction, no extensive study to correlate variables to extraction rates has been identified." |
