Centrifuge Study of DNAPL Transport in Granular Media
Publication: Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 126, Issue 2
Abstract
The migration potential of dense nonaqueous phase liquids (DNAPLs) in saturated soil was investigated experimentally using the elevated acceleration field of the geotechnical centrifuge. The transport of the DNAPL was monitored with a video camera in flight, through the transparent wall of the sample box. By using measurements of the velocity of the DNAPL front from models corresponding to the same prototype and applying the technique of “modeling of models,” the stable infiltration of a low density, high viscosity DNAPL in saturated homogeneous media was shown to scale properly in the centrifuge. The visual observations confirmed the correlations between the DNAPL physicochemical properties and transport patterns, which have important consequences for the characterization of DNAPL-contaminated sites. Infiltrating DNAPLs of high density and low viscosity displace water in an unstable manner and create extensive contaminated areas characterized by non-uniform DNAPL distributions. In contrast, the displacement of water by DNAPLs of low density and high viscosity is stable and efficient, and hence, results in smaller contaminated areas of high DNAPL saturation. Numerical simulations yielded predictions and sensitivity analysis results that agreed well with these experimental observations.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
1.
Abu-Hassanein, Z. S. ( 1997). “A study of DNAPL infiltration in saturated porous media: similitude analysis and centrifuge simulations,” PhD thesis, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pa.
2.
Abu-Hassanein, Z. S., Riemer, M. F., and Pantazidou, M. (1998). “Infiltration of high viscosity low density DNAPLs in saturated porous media.” Centrifuge '98, T. Kimura, O. Kusakabe, and J. Takemura, eds., Balkema, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 595–599.
3.
Arulanandan, K., Thompson, P. Y., Kutter, B. L., Meegoda, N. J., Muraleetharan, K. K., and Yogachandran, C. (1988). “Centrifuge modeling of transport processes for pollutants in soils.”J. Geotech. Engrg. Div., ASCE, 114(2), 185–205.
4.
Bentsen, R. G., and Anli, J. (1977). “Using estimation techniques to convert centrifuge data into a capillary-pressure curve.” Trans. SPE of AIME, 193, 57–64.
5.
Brewster, M. L., et al. (1995). “Observed migration of a controlled DNAPL release by geophysical methods.” Ground Water, 33(6), 977–987.
6.
Brooks, R. H., and Corey, A. T. (1966). “Properties of porous media affecting fluid flow.”J. Irrig. and Drain Div., ASCE, 61, 061–68.
7.
Cohen, R. M., Mercer, J. W., and Matthews, J. (1993). DNAPL site evaluation. C. K. Smoley, Boca Raton, Fla.
8.
Collins, R. E. (1961). Flow of fluids through porous materials. Reinhold Publishing Corporation, New York.
9.
Cooke, A. B., and Mitchell, R. J. (1991). “Evaluation of contaminant transport in partially saturated soils.” Centrifuge '91, H. Y. Ko and F. G. McLean, eds., Balkema, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 345–349.
10.
Corey, A. T. (1994). Mechanics of immiscible fluids in porous media, 3rd Ed., Water Resources Publications, Highlands Ranch, Colo.
11.
Craig, W. H. (1995). “Geotechnical centrifuges: past, present, and future.” Geotechnical centrifuge technology, R. N. Taylor, ed., Blackie Academic and Professional, Glasgow, U.K.
12.
Culligan, P. J., Savvidou, C., and Barry, D. A. (1996). “Centrifuge modeling of contaminant transport processes.”Electronic J. Geotech. Engrg., Fall.
13.
Falta, R. W., Pruess, K., Finsterle, S., and Battistelli, A. (1995). T2VOC user's guide. Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, Berkeley, Calif.
14.
Garnier, J., et al. (1998). “NECER: network of European centrifuges for environmental geotechnic research: special report.” Centrifuge '98, T. Kimura, O. Kusakabe, and J. Takemura, eds., Balkema, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 33–55.
15.
Hassler, G. L., and Brunner, E. (1945). “Measurement of capillary pressures in small core samples.” Trans. AIME, 160, 114–123.
16.
Held, R. J., and Illangasekare, T. H. (1995). “Fingering of dense nonaqueous phase liquids in porous media. I: Experimental investigation.” Water Resour. Res., 31(5), 1213–1222.
17.
Hillel, D., and Elrick, D. E., eds. (1990). Scaling in soil physics: principles and applications. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, Wisc.
18.
Homsy, G. M. (1987). “Viscous fingering in porous media.” Ann. Rev. Fluid Mech., 19, 271–311.
19.
Illangasekare, T. H., Ramsey, J. L., Jensen, K. H., and Butts, M. B. (1995). “Experimental study of movement and distribution of dense organic contaminants in heterogeneous aquifers.” J. Contam. Hydrol., 20, 1–25.
20.
Illangasekare, T. H., Znidarcic, D., Al-Sheridda, M., and Reible, D. D. (1991). “Multiphase flow in porous media.” Centrifuge '91, H. Y. Ko and F. G. McLean, eds., Balkema, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 517–523.
21.
Johnson, R. L., and Pankow, J. F. (1992). “Dissolution of dense chlorinated solvents into groundwater. II: Source functions for pools of solvent.” Envir. Sci. Technol., 26(5), 896–901.
22.
Jury, W. A., Gardner, W. R., and Gardner, W. H. (1991). Soil physics. Wiley, New York.
23.
Knight, M. A., and Mitchell, R. J. (1995). “Centrifuge modeling of multiphase flow in the vadose zone.” Geoenvir. 2000, Y. B. Acar and D. E. Daniel, eds., ASCE, 315–330.
24.
Kueper, B. H., and Frind, E. O. (1988). “An overview of immiscible displacement in porous media.” J. Contam. Hydrol., 2, 95–110.
25.
Kueper, B. H., Abott, W., and Farquhar, G. (1989). “Experimental observations of multiphase flow in heterogeneous porous media.” J. Contam. Hydrol., 5, 83–95.
26.
Kueper, B. H., Redman, D., Starr, R. C., Reitsma, S., and Mah, M. (1993). “A field experiments to study the behavior of tetrachloroethylene below the water table: spatial distribution of residual and pooled DNAPL.” Ground Water, 31(5), 756–766.
27.
Lenormand, R., Touboul, E., and Zarcone, C. (1988). “Numerical models and experiments on immiscible displacements in porous media.” J. Fluid Mech., 189, 165–187.
28.
Levy, L. C., Culligan, P. J., and Germaine, J. T. (1998). “Investigation into DNAPL transport in fractures using capillary tubes.” Centrifuge '98, T. Kimura, O. Kusakabe, and J. Takemura, eds., Balkema, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 607–612.
29.
Loomis, A. G., and Crowell, D. C. (1964). “Theory and application of dimensional and inspectional analyses to model study displacement in petroleum reservoirs.” Rep. No. 6546, U.S. Bureau of Mines, Washington, D.C.
30.
MacDonald, J. A., and Kavanaugh, M. C. (1994). “Restoring contaminated groundwater: an achievable goal?” Envir. Sci. Technol., 28(8), 362A–368A.
31.
Miller, E. E. ( 1980). “Similitude and scaling of soil-water phenomena.” Applications of soil physics, D. Hillel, ed., Academic Press, New York.
32.
Mitchell, R. J., and Stratton, B. C. (1994). “LNAPL penetration into porous media.” Centrifuge '94, C. F. Leung, F. H. Lee, and T. S. Tan, eds., Balkema, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 345–349.
33.
Okusu, N. M., and Udell, K. S. ( 1989). “Immiscible displacement in porous media including gravity and capillary forces.” Multiphase transport in porous media–1989, E. E. Eaton, K. S. Udell, M. Kaviany, and K. Vafai, eds., ASME, New York, 13–21.
34.
Pantazidou, M., Riemer, M. F., and Abu-Hassanein, Z. S. (1995). “Centrifuge study of dense nonaqueous phase liquid transport.” EOS, 76, 46.
35.
Pokrovskii, G. I., and Fiodorov, I. S. (1939). “Studies of soil pressures and deformations by means of a centrifuge.” Proc., 1st Int. Conf. on Soil Mech. and Found. Engrg., 1, 70.
36.
Savvidou, C. (1988). “Centrifuge modeling of heat transfer in soil.” Centrifuge '88, J. F. Corte, ed., Balkema, Rotterdam, The Netherlands, 583–591.
37.
Schiegg, H. O. (1990). Laboratory setup and results of experiments on two-dimensional multiphase flow in porous media. J. F. McBride and D. N. Graham, eds., Pacific Northwest Laboratory, Richland, Wash.
38.
Schwille, F. (1988). Dense chlorinated solvents in porous and fractured media—model experiments. Lewis Publishers, Chelsea, Mich.
39.
“Standard test method for measurement of interfacial tension of oil against water by the ring method; ASTM D971-82.” (1982). Annual book of ASTM standards. ASTM, West Conshohocken, Pa.
40.
“Standard test method for measurement of soil potential (suction) using filter paper; ASTM D5298-94.” (1994). Annual book of ASTM standards. ASTM, West Conshohocken, Pa.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering
Volume 126 • Issue 2 • February 2000
Pages: 105 - 115
History
Received: Jul 9, 1998
Published online: Feb 1, 2000
Published in print: Feb 2000
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.