Abstract |
Steam Injection/Vacuum Extraction (SIVE) is a method to enable vacuum extraction to treat soils contaminated with semivolatile organic compounds (SVOCs) and to speed the cleanup of soils contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The steam injection raises the soil temperature causing more VOCs and SVOCs to vaporize into the soil air spaces. The vacuum extraction wells create a pressure drop in the soil causing gas flow to the well and thus removing the vaporized organics. This maintains the concentration gradient forcing the organics contaminants into the vapor phase and allowing further removal of the organics. After a considerable amount of laboratory research, SIVE is now being applied to field situations. One full scale remediation has been performed and several pilot-scale systems have been installed and are now being studied. This paper discusses each of these systems, the data that will be obtained and information that still needs to be developed. |