Effect of Uncertain Hydraulic Conductivity on the Simulated Fate and Transport of BTEX Compounds at a Field Site
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 131, Issue 5
Abstract
Monte Carlo simulations were conducted to investigate the effect of uncertain hydraulic conductivity on the natural attenuation of BTEX compounds (benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, and xylenes) through aerobic respiration, denitrification, Fe(III) and sulfate reductions, and methanogenesis observed at a field site on Hill Air Force Base, Utah. First, the uncertainty in the field was represented by multiple realizations of spatially correlated random fields. The simulated BTEX plumes resulting from a light nonaqueous phase liquid source were analyzed for mass distributions and the relationships among various factors such as dissolved BTEX mass, plume spreading, and depletions of electron acceptors or productions of and methane. Second, additional realizations with the same mean but different variances and correlation lengths were used to determine how the model responds to varying degrees of uncertainty in the field. The methodology and insights are of general interest and applicable to fuel-hydrocarbon natural-attenuation sites.
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Acknowledgments
The writers thank T. P. Clement of Auburn University for his comments; E. A. Sudicky of University of Waterloo, Patrick Wang and Hanna Chen of University of Alabama for their help on this research project; and Dan Hawkes of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory for his editorial improvement of the manuscript. The writers are also grateful to the two anonymous reviewers whose constructive comments have helped us clarify our presentation.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 131 • Issue 5 • May 2005
Pages: 767 - 776
Copyright
© 2005 ASCE.
History
Received: Apr 30, 2003
Accepted: Aug 17, 2004
Published online: May 1, 2005
Published in print: May 2005
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