• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
• /
• 2002.04a
• /
• pp.179-182
• /
• 2002

The objective of this study was to evaluate petroleum hydrocarbon degradation processes governing natural attenuation at tile contaminated site and accomplished through conducting on investigation of degradation rate, capacity, and mechanism of the monitored natural attenuation. The monitoring results of the three years indicated that the concentrations of DO, nitrate, and sulfate in the contaminated area were significantly lower than these in the none-contaminated area. The results also showed a higher ferrous iron concentration, a lower redox potential and a neutral pH in the contaminated groundwater, suggesting that biodegradation of TEX is the major on-going process in the contaminated area. However, reduction of TEX in the groundwater was not only biodegradation but also dilution and reaeration during infiltration of uncotaminated surface and groudwater.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
• /
• v.14 no.4
• /
• pp.15-22
• /
• 2009

The remediation efficiency for a large scale petroleum-contaminated site was evaluated by using the Engineered Land-farming system which was consists of the following parameters; moisture & nutrient injector data, blower system, HDPE sheet and sump system. To enhance the degradation ability in the early stage, main nutrients such as nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) were adjusted for the site condition. As a result of the periodic tilling process, the concentration of contaminated soil was decreased to 348 mg/kg, which was lower than 500 mg/kg (regal standards) while satisfying remediation Efficiency of 82% (the maximum concentration of 1,893 mg/kg). The appropriate temperature range for an active operation was investigated between $28.9{\sim}35.6^{\circ}C$. For the contaminated soils having different initial concentration, the TPH (Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons) concentration was decreased evenly along with the CFU (Colony Forming Unit), moisture content and contaminant concentration after 38days of gratifying the legal standards of under 500 mg/kg.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
• /
• v.27 no.spc
• /
• pp.51-63
• /
• 2022

In this study, the TPH(Total Petroleum Hydrocarbon) contamination and microbial ecological characteristics in petroleum-contaminated site were investigated through the correlation among the vertical TPH contamination distribution of the site, the geochemical characteristics, and the indigenous microbial ecology. The high TPH concentration showed in the vicinity of 3~4 m or less which is thought to be affected by vertical movement due to the impervious clay layer. In addition, the TPH concentration was found to have a positive correlation with Fe²⁺, TOC concentration, and the number of petroleum-degrading bacteria, and a negative correlation with the microbial community diversity. The microbial community according to the vertical distribution of TPH showed that Proteobacteria and Firmicutes at the phylum level were dominant in this study area as a whole, and they competed with each other. In particular, it was confirmed that the difference in the microbial community was different due to the difference in the degree of vertical TPH contamination. In addition, the genera Acidovorax, Leptolinea, Rugoshibacter, and Smithella appeared dominant in the samples in which TPH was detected, which is considered to be the microorganisms involved in the degradation of TPH in this study area. It is expected that this study can be used as an important data to understand the contamination characteristics and biogeochemical and microbial characteristics of these TPH-contaminated sites.

• Proceedings of the IEEK Conference
• /
• 2002.07b
• /
• pp.786-789
• /
• 2002

A recurrent artificial neural network (ANN) model is developed to simulate hydrocarbon recovery process at petroleum-contaminated site. The groundwater extraction rate, vacuum pressure, and saturation hydraulic conductivity are selected as the input variables, while the cumulative hydrocarbon recovery volume is considered as the output variable. The experimental data fer establishing the ANN model are from implementation of a multiphase flow model for dual phase remediation process under different input variable conditions. The complex nonlinear and dynamic relationship between input and output data sets are then identified through the developed ANN model. Reasonable agreements between modeling results and experimental data are observed, which reveals high effectiveness and efficiency of the neural network approach in modeling complex hydrocarbon recovery behavior.

• Journal of Life Science
• /
• v.19 no.5
• /
• pp.659-663
• /
• 2009

Bacterial stain 3Y was isolated from a site that was contaminated with diesel for more than 15 years. The strain could grow on various petroleum using hydrocarbons as the sole carbon source. The strain grew not only on aliphatic hydrocarbons but also on aromatic hydrocarbons. 3Y grew on aliphatic petroleum hydrocarbons hexane or hexadecane, and aromatic petroleum hydrocarbons BTEX, phenol, biphenyl, or phenanthrene. The strain showed aromatic ring dioxygenase and meta-cleavage dioxygenase activities as determined by tests using indole and catechol. Aromatic ring dioxygenase is involved in the initial step of biodegradation of aromatic hydrocarbons while meta-cleavage dioxygenase catalyzes the cleavage of the benzene ring. Based on a nucleotide sequence analysis of its 16S rRNA gene, 3Y belongs to the genus Sphingomonas. A phylogenetic tress was constructed based on the nucleotide sequences of closest relatives of 3Y and petroleum hydrocarbon degrading sphingomonads. 3Y was in a cluster that was different from the cluster that contained well-known sphingomonads. The results of this study suggest that 3Y has the potential to cleanup oil-contaminated sites. Further investigation is warranted to optimize conditions to degrade petroleum hydrocarbons by the strain to develop a better bioremediation strategy.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
• /
• v.9 no.3
• /
• pp.38-48
• /
• 2004

Natural attenuation of petroleum hydrocarbon was investigated at an industrial complex about 45 Km away from Seoul. The three-years monitoring results indicated that the concentrations of DO, nitrate, and sulfate in the contaminated area were significantly lower than the background monitoring groundwater under the non-contaminated area. The results also showed a higher ferrous iron concentration, a lower redox potential, and a higher (neutral) pH in the contaminated groundwater, suggesting that biodegradation of TEX(Toluene, Ethylbenzene, Xylene) is the major on-going process in the contaminated area. Groundwater in the contaminated area is anaerobic, and sulfate reduction is the dominant terminal electron accepting process in the area. The total attenuation rate was about 0.0017∼0.0224day$^{-1}$ and the estimated first-order degradation rate constant(λ) was 0.0008∼0.0106day$^{-1}$ . However, the reduction of TEX concentration in the groundwater was resulted from not only biodegradation but also dilution and reaeration through recharge of uncotaminated surface and groundwater. The natural attenuation was, therefore, found to be an effective, on-going remedial process at the site.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
• /
• v.18 no.2
• /
• pp.36-44
• /
• 2013

The objectives of this study were to identify the characteristics of shallow groundwater from the oil-contaminated site for a long period and to evaluate the applicability of biopile technology to treat the soil excavated from it. The eight monitoring wells were installed in the contaminated site and pH, Electrical Conductivity (EC), Dissolved Oxygen (DO), Oxidation Reduction Potential (ORP), Temperature and the concentrations of major ions and pollutants were measured. The VOCs in soil gas were monitored during biopile operation and TPH concentration was analyzed at the termination of the experiment. The pH was 6.62 considered subacid and EC was 886.19 ${\mu}S/cm$. DO was measured to be 2.06 mg/L showing the similar characteristic of deep groundwater. ORP was 119.02 mV indicating oxidation state. The temperature of groundwater was measured to be $16.97^{\circ}C$. The piper diagram showed that groundwater was classified as Ca-$HCO_3$ type considered deep groundwater. The ground water concentration for TPH, Benzene, Toluene, Xylene of the first round was slightly higher than that of the second round. The concentration of carbon dioxide of soil gas was increased to 1.3% and the concentration of VOCs was completely eliminated after the 40 days. The TPH concentration showed 98% remediation efficiency after the 90 days biopile operation.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
• /
• 2003.09a
• /
• pp.3-10
• /
• 2003

Soil and groundwater contamination by petroleum hydrocarbon products is only one of many environmental problems in Korea. However, many environmental consulting companies have been targeted their business on this subject because the petroleum-oil-lubricant (POL) products have been widely used product and accidental releases of the products from storages resulted numerous small and large contaminated sites throughout Korea. Therefore, many small and large companies are actively participating in environmental assessment and remediation projects for the POL contaminated sites. Remedial technologies for the POL contaminated sites have been developed for many years by government and private institutions throughout the world. Development of a new decontamination technology for the POL contaminated sites is no longer attractive issue in research community because scientific bases of most cost-effective remedial technologies are well understood and have been used in the field by commercial sector. Numerous sites contaminated by underground tanks at gas stations have been remediated by relatively small companies in this country. We should appreciate their noticeable contributions as a frontier under very difficult market environment in Korea. We heard many successful stories as well as a few failure stories. Soil-groundwater remediation of POL contaminated site is not a simple task as shown in the text books or protocols. Therefore, failure risk is always with us, which requires continuous efforts for improvement of the technologies by the users and developers. In this presentation, author will discuss technical problems encountered and improvement made during implementation of several remedial technologies applied by Samsung Environmental Team. This is not a presentation about research or case study. We want to share our thought and experience with environmental engineers actively engaged in soil and groundwater remediation projects in Korea.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Hazard Mitigation
• /
• v.1 no.3 s.3
• /
• pp.83-92
• /
• 2001

Field investigations for subsurface soil and groundwater at a gas station showed that the site was severely contaminated and even petroleum compounds as free liquid state were observed. Pilot-scale soil flushing and soil vapor extraction process(SVE) were applied to evaluate the effectiveness of pollutants removal. Surfactant solution, Tween 80, was used to enhance the solubility of petroleum compounds and resulted in about 10 times increase on TPH(Total Petroleum Hydrocarbon) concentration. As for SVE method, maximum concentration of TPH and BTEX reached within 24 hours of extraction and then continuously decreased. Considerations on the groundwater level and the kinetic limitation for volatilization of contaminants have to be taken into account for the effective application of SVE process.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
• /
• 2000.11a
• /
• pp.44-63
• /
• 2000

Situated close to Heathrow Airport, and adjacent to the M4 and M25 Motorways, the site at Axis Park is considered a prime location for business in the UK. In consequnce two of the UK's major property development companies, MEPC and Redrew Homes sought the expertise of Intergeo to remediate the contaminated former industrial site prior to its development. Industrial use of the twenty-six hectare site, started in 1936, when Hawker Aircraft commence aircraft manufacture. In 1963 the Firestone Tyre and Rubber Company purchased part of the site. Ford commenced vehicle production at the site in the mid-1970's and production was continued by Iveco Ford from 1986 to the plant's decommissioning in 1997. Geologically the site is underlain by sand and gravel, deposited in prehistory by the River Thames, with London Clay at around 6m depth. The level of groundwater fluctuates seasonally at around 2.5m depth, moving slowly southwest towards local streams and watercourses. A phased investigation of the site was undertaken, which culminated in the extensive site investigation undertaken by Intergeo in 1998. In total 50 boreholes, 90 probeholes and 60 trial pits were used to investigate the site and around 4000 solid and 1300 liquid samples were tested in the laboratory for chemical substances. The investigations identified total petroleum hydrocarbons in the soil up to 25, 000mg/kg. Diesel oil, with some lubricating oil were the main components. Volatile organic compounds were identified in the groundwater in excess of 10mg/l. Specific substances included trichloromethane, trichloromethane and tetrachloroethene. Both the oil and volatile compounds were widely spread across the site, The specific substances identified could be traced back to industrial processes used at one or other dates in the sites history Slightly elevated levels of toxic metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons were also identified locally. Prior to remediation of the site and throughout its progress, extensive liaison with the regulatory authorities and the client's professional representatives was required. In addition to meetings, numerous technical documents detailing methods and health and safety issues were required in order to comply with UK environmental and safety legislation. After initially considering a range of options to undertake remediation, the following three main techniques were selected: ex-situ bioremediation of hydrocarbon contaminated soils, skimming of free floating hydrocarbon product from the water surface at wells and excavations and air stripping of volatile organic compounds from groundwater recovered from wells. The achievements were as follows: 1) 350, 000m3 of soil was excavated and 112, 000m3 of sand and gravel was processed to remove gravel and cobble sized particles; 2) 53, 000m3 of hydrocarbon contaminated soil was bioremediated in windrows ; 3) 7000m3 of groundwater was processed by skimming to remove free floating Product; 4) 196, 000m3 of groundwater was Processed by air stripping to remove volatile organic compounds. Only 1000m3 of soil left the site for disposal in licensed waste facilities Given the costs of disposal in the UK, the selected methods represented a considerable cost saving to the Clients. All other soil was engineered back into the ground to a precise geotechnical specification. The following objective levels were achieved across the site 1) By a Risk Based Corrective Action (RBCA) methodology it was demonstrated that soil with less that 1000mg/kg total petroleum hydrocarbons did not pose a hazard to health or water resources and therefore, could remain insitu; 2) Soils destined for the residential areas of the site were remediated to 250mg/kg total petroleum hydrocarbons; in the industrial areas 500mg/kg was proven acceptable. 3) Hydrocarbons in groundwater were remediated to below the Dutch Intervegtion Level of 0.6mg/1; 4) Volatile organic compounds/BTEX group substances were reduced to below the Dutch Intervention Levels; 5) Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and metals were below Inter-departmental Committee for the Redevelopment of Contaminated Land guideline levels for intended enduse. In order to verify the qualify of the work 1500 chemical test results were submitted for the purpose of validation. Quality assurance checks were undertaken by independent consultants and at an independent laboratory selected by Intergeo. Long term monitoring of water quality was undertaken for a period of one year after remediation work had been completed. Both the regulatory authorities and Clients representatives endorsed the quality of remediation now completed at the site. Subsequent to completion of the remediation work Redrew Homes constructed a prestige housing development. The properties at "Belvedere Place" retailed at premium prices. On the MEPC site the Post Office, amongst others, has located a major sorting office for the London area. Exceptionally high standards of remediation, control and documentation were a requirement for the work undertaken here.aken here.