Air distribution and size changes in the remediated zone after air sparging for soil particle movement

In an unconsolidated porous medium, soil particles can be mobilized by physical perturbation. In model systems of fluids flowing over spherical particles attached to flat surfaces, the hydrodynamic shear force depends on the fluid viscosity, particle radius, and flow velocity. Soil particles can be reasonably expected to be transported by flowing water during air sparging when the particle-size distribution does not fit the densest possible particle arrangement. If soil particles are transported during air sparging, then the distribution of the porosity and reservoir permeability will change. The remediated zone changes because of the changes in soil characteristics. This study applied some mathematical models to elucidate the mobilization process of soil particles during in situ air sparging. The changes in the characteristics of the soil and the swept volume of injected air during air sparging were also investigated. The results demonstrated that particle movement reduced the radius of influence (ROI) and the swept volume of injected air. In this case study, the maximum reducing rates in ROI and the swept volume were 24% and 26% for the zone where the gas saturation exceeded 10%.