Change of collision efficiency with distance in bacterial transport experiments

Understanding the mechanisms of bacterial transport in aquifers is important in developing bioremediation strategies. Collision efficiency (alpha) is one important parameter used in modeling bacterial transport. This study was undertaken to measure change in alpha with distance by performing a bacterial transport experiment in Oyster, Virginia. Following injection of a bacterium, Comamonas sp., into a well, water samples were collected at various distances along the flowpath and injected into columns packed with homogenized South Oyster focus area sediment. Zeta potentials of the bacteria in the samples were measured. Values of alpha were determined at various locations in the field in two ways: based on field breakthrough concentrations at the sampling points and based on column breakthrough concentrations. The alpha values estimated from field breakthrough decreased with distance, whereas those estimated from column breakthrough increased with distance. Bacterial cell surface charge became progressively more negative with distance in the field. We hypothesize that the apparent contradiction between field and column alpha values was caused by differences in the flow of the two systems. Flow in the columns was forced to occur through fine-grained zones of iron and aluminum hydroxide coatings that selectively removed the most negatively charged bacteria. In contrast, in the field, the injected cells did not come into contact with the positively charged coatings because the bulk solution bypassed them due to heterogeneous hydraulic properties. These results suggest that laboratory-based models may underestimate bacterial transport distance in the field. A more realistic approach may be necessary to capture the degree of heterogeneity.