A groundwater velocity and dissolved oxygen on bioremediation of gasoline-contaminated sandy aquifers

(1995) A groundwater velocity and dissolved oxygen on bioremediation of gasoline-contaminated sandy aquifers. PhD thesis, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals.

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Arabic Abstract

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English Abstract

Benzene, Toluene and Xylene (BTX) compounds are the main contituents fo gasoline and their presence in groundwater is common because of hydrocarbon spill and leakage of storage tanks. These compounds are relatively highly soluble and mobile in the subsurface and are toxic even at very low concentrations. Bioremediation is the most widely used technique among all the currently employed methods for treating BTX contaminated soil and groundwater. Various factors affecting bioremediation, such as dissolved oxygen, nutrient, temperature, pH, etc. have been well studied in the laboratory soil columns and microcosms. The effect of soil permeability (as groundwater velocity) has been investigated in this study using a pilot scale sand tank model. The effect of dissolved oxygen (DO) and contaminant concentration are also included in the study using a pilot scale sand tank model. The effect of dissolved oxygen (DO) and contaminant concentration are also included in the study. Numerical models have been developed using finite difference and orthogonal collocation to simulate one dimensional transport with time-dependent pore water velocity. The modeling process includes sorption given by linear isotherm and biodegradation given by a variety of kinetics such as first-order, zero-order, Monod, Michalis-Menten, Haldane and many other inhibitory and non-inhibitory kinetics. A variety of initial and boundary conditions such as Dirichlet's, Neuman's, mixed, decaying, etc. have been modeled. Three models (first-order and/or zero-order, non growth associated Monod, and Monod) have been inverted using a Gauss-Marquardt-Levenberg algorithm to assess the transport parameter, such as retardation constant ( R ), first-order rate constant (μ) and zero-order rate constant (γ). A 3 (2²) factorial experiment has been conducted to study three factors, groundwater velocity, BTX concentration and dissolved oxygen (DO). Observed concentration data colllected from the sand tank model have been used for estimating the transport parameters. The data has been found to fit well to first-order/zero-order as well as to Monod model. Groundwater velocity has been found to be the most significant factor governing the rate of biodegradation (determined from the first-order rate constant) of BTX compounds. Dissolved oxygen and BTX concentration have also been found to be significant factors.

Item Type: Thesis (PhD)
Subjects: Civil Engineering
Department: College of Design and Built Environment > Civil and Environmental Engineering
Committee Advisor: Allayla, Rashid I.
Committee Members: Selim, Shokri Z. and Hussain, Tahir and Al-Suwaiyan, Mohammad S. and Nakhla, Girgis F. and Farooq, Shaukat
Depositing User: Mr. Admin Admin
Date Deposited: 22 Jun 2008 13:58
Last Modified: 01 Nov 2019 13:57
URI: http://eprints.kfupm.edu.sa/id/eprint/10172