Factors affecting air sparging remediation systems using field data and numerical simulations.

Area of Science:

• Environmental Engineering
• Geotechnical Engineering
• Remediation Technologies

Background:

• Air sparging is a common in-situ remediation technique for contaminated groundwater.
• Optimizing air sparging performance requires understanding key influencing factors.
• Field data and numerical simulations are crucial for evaluating remediation effectiveness.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the impact of various factors on air sparging removal time and cost.
• To identify critical parameters controlling contaminant removal efficiency.
• To provide data-driven insights for optimizing air sparging system design and operation.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of field data from five air sparging sites.
• Performance of numerical simulations to expand data and validate field observations.
• Evaluation of ten selected factors influencing removal time and cost.
• Application of linear sensitivity equations to quantify factor impacts.

Main Results:

• Contaminant type, sparge pulsing, well number, biodecay rate, soil porosity, and organic carbon content were most critical.
• Moderate to low effects were observed for sparge point depth, air injection rate, air conductivity, and anisotropy.
• Subsurface air coverage, residence time, contaminant equilibrium, phase distribution, oxygen availability, and volatility influenced system responses.

Conclusions:

• Key factors like contaminant properties and system design significantly influence air sparging efficiency.
• Understanding these factors allows for more predictable and cost-effective groundwater remediation.
• Optimized air sparging strategies can be developed based on site-specific conditions and factor analysis.