SBIR-STTR Award

The technical objectives of this proposal are oriented toward the development of soil surfactant flushing and washing as a low-cost, low-impact, low-risk, effective technique for the removal and ultimate destruction of the organic contaminants in soil. These objectives are:ù demonstration of the effectiveness of an ionic surfactant solution at concentrations above the critical micelle concentration to solubilize weathered-in, highly adsorbed contaminants in soils.ù further investigation of the effectiveness of modified solvent extraction as a mean of reclaiming contaminant-laden surfactant solution for recycle and/or concentration for disposal.ù investigation of thin film aeration as a technique for reclaiming surfactant solutionsInvestigation of a phase distribution approach to micellar solubilization.ù development of a lumped parameter modification of an existing mathematical model for soil surfactant flushing which permits its application to fractured bedrock and to highly inhomogeneous soils.

This research is targeted towards the field scale feasibility testing of in situ surfactant flushing (ISSF). Field data for the very promising remedial technologies essentially do not exist. This lack is frequently cited in the literature. Not only will this proposed research provide this much needed information, but it will also test a surfactant recycle/reuse system which further enhances the technology (capable of treating a broad menu of chemical constituents at hazardous waste sites) from an economical perspective. The proposed research also includes the development of preliminary (I well) field feasibility of ISSF prior to the more costly multiple well (injection, extraction, monitoring) pilot-scale testing; development of rapid reliable analytical techniques for field monitoring; development of improved suspended solids handling; and verification of the field scale mathematical model.