Prediction of Longevities of ZVI and Pervious Concrete Reactive Barriers Using the Transport Simulation Model
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 144, Issue 9
Abstract
This investigation involved a column study and model simulation to evaluate longevity of zero-valent ion (ZVI) and pervious concrete (PERVC) reactive barriers for treatment of acid mine drainage (AMD). Each of the reactive media were evaluated for sorption capacity and hydraulic performance under the dynamic flow conditions of a column setup. The test data obtained were applied to the one-dimensional advective-dispersion transport equation to predict geochemical changes in concentration of contaminants flowing through a reactive barrier, as a function of time and distance. PERVC was found to be more effective in contaminant removal from AMD than ZVI. PERVC raised the pH of AMD from 2.99 to an average value of 11, compared with a maximum pH of 9 attained by ZVI treatment. While both media achieved complete removal of the main contaminants comprising Al, Fe, and Zn, the PERVC containing 30% fly ash (30FA-PERVC) had greater retardation factors and higher overall removal efficiency than ZVI. The hydrodynamic dispersion coefficient for 30FA-PERVC was 0.4 to compared with 0.2 to for ZVI. A barrier wall of 1.5 m thickness was estimated to provide indicative treatment life spans of 5 and 10 years for ZVI and 30FA-PERVC reactive media, respectively. Based on these results, the longevity of 30FA-PERVC reactive barriers can be about twice that of ZVI barriers.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Acknowledgments
The work herein presented was funded by the National Research Foundation (NRF) of South Africa, IPRR Grant No. 96800. The authors are grateful for the financial support by NRF.
References
Ambrosini, G. S. D. 2004. “Reactive materials for subsurface remediation through permeable reactive barriers.” Ph.D. thesis, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich.
Aube, B. 2004. “The science of treating acid mine drainage and smelter effluents.” Accessed June 18, 2017. http://www.enviraube.com.
Bartzas, G., and K. Komnitsas. 2010. “Solid phase studies and geochemical modelling of low-cost permeable reactive barriers.” J. Hazard. Mater. 183 (1–3): 301–308. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2010.07.024.
Bartzas, G., K. Komnitsas, and I. Paspaliaris. 2006. “Laboratory evaluation of barriers to treat acidic leachates.” Miner. Eng. 19: 505–514. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mineng.2005.09.032.
Bilardi, S. 2012. “Short and long term behaviour of Fe0 and FeO/pumice granular mixtures to be used in PRB for groundwater remediation.” Ph.D. thesis, Dipartimento di Meccanica e Materiali, Universitá Mediterranea di Reggio Calabria.
Carniato, L., G. Schoups, P. Seuntjens, T. Van Nooten, Q. Simons, and L. Bastiaens. 2012. “Predicting longevity of iron permeable reactive barriers using multiple iron deactivation models.” J. Contam. Hydrol. 142–143: 93–108. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jconhyd.2012.08.012.
Cundy, A. B., L. Hopkinson, and R. L. D. Whitby. 2008. “Use of iron-based technologies in contaminated land and groundwater remediation: A review.” Sci. Total Environ. 400 (1–3): 42–51. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2008.07.002.
De Windt, L., F. Marsal, E. Tinseau, and D. Pellegrini. 2008. “Reactive transport modeling of geochemical interactions at a concrete/argillite interface, Tournemire site (France).” Phys. Chem. Earth 33: S295–S305. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pce.2008.10.035.
Ekolu, S. O., F. Z. Azene, and S. Diop. 2013. “A concrete reactive barrier for acid mine drainage treatment.” Proc. Inst. Civ. Eng. Water Manage. 167 (7): 373–380. https://doi.org/10.1680/wama.13.00035.
Ekolu, S. O., S. Diop, and F. Z. Azene. 2016. “Properties of pervious concrete for hydrological applications.” Concr. Beton: J. Concr. Soc. South. Afr. 144: 18–24.
Fetter, C. W. 2001. Applied hydrogeology, 4th ed., 598. London: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Gillmor, A. M. 2011. “Attenuation of acid mine drainage enhanced by organic carbon and limestone addition: A process characterization.” M.Sc. dissertation, Dept. of Geosciences, Univ. of Massachusetts Amherst.
Grajales-Mesa, S. J., and G. Malina. 2016. “Screening reactive materials for a permeable barrier to treat TCE-contaminated groundwater: Laboratory studies.” Environ. Earth Sci. 75 (9): 772. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-016-5567-8.
Hunt, C. M. 1966. “Nitrogen sorption measurements and surface areas of hardened cement paste.” In Proc., Symp. on Structure of Portland Cement Paste and Concrete, 11. Washington, DC: Highway Research Board.
Indraratna, B., G. Regmi, L. D. Nghiem, and A. Golab. 2010. “Performance of PRB for the remediation of acidic groundwater in acid sulfate soil terrain.” J. Geotech. Geoenviron. Eng. 7 (136): 897–906. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)GT.1943-5606.0000305.
Jeen, S-W., R. W. Gillham, and A. Przepiora. 2011. “Predictions of long-term performance of granular iron permeable reactive barriers: Field-scale evaluation.” J. Contam. Hydrol. 123 (1–2): 50–64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jconhyd.2010.12.006.
Komnitsas, K., G. Bartzas, and I. Paspaliaris. 2004. “Efficiency of limestone and red mud barriers: Laboratory column studies.” Min. Eng. 17 (2): 183–194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mineng.2003.11.006.
Lee, T., C. Benson, and G. Eykholt. 2004. “Waste green sands as reactive media for groundwater contaminated with trichloroethylene.” J. Hazard. Mater. 109 (1–3): 25–36. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2003.10.007.
Li, L., C. H. Benson, and E. M. Lawson. 2005. “Impact of mineral fouling on hydraulic behavior of permeable reactive barriers.” Ground Water 43 (4): 582–596. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1745-6584.2005.0042.x.
Li, L., C. H. Benson, and E. M. Lawson. 2006. “Modeling porosity reductions caused by mineral fouling in continuous-wall permeable reactive barriers.” J. Contam. Hydrol. 83 (1–2): 89–121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jconhyd.2005.11.004.
Majersky, G. 2009. Metals recovery from acid mine drainage using pervious concrete, 69. Saarbrücken, Germany: VDM Publishing House.
Mayer, K. U., D. W. Blowes, and E. O. Frind. 2001. “Reactive transport modeling of an in situ reactive barrier for the treatment of hexavalent chromium and trichloroethylene in groundwater.” Water Resour. Res. 37 (12): 3091–3103. https://doi.org/10.1029/2001WR000234.
Mayer, K. U., E. O. Frind, and D. W. Blowes. 2002. “Multicomponent reactive transport modeling in variably saturated porous media using a generalized formulation for kinetically controlled reactions.” Water Resour. Res. 38 (9): 13-1–13-21. https://doi.org/10.1029/2001WR000862.
Medvidovic, V. N., J. Peric, and M. Trgo. 2006. “Column performance in lead removal from aqueous solutions by fixed bed of natural zeolite-clinoptilolite.” Sep. Purif. Technol. 49 (3): 237–244. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.seppur.2005.10.005.
Mikhail, R. S., L. E. Copeland, and S. Brunauer. 1964. “Pore structures and surface areas of hardened portland cement pastes.” Can. J. Chem. 42 (2): 426–438. https://doi.org/10.1139/v64-060.
Mikhail, R. S., D. H. Turk, and S. Brunauer. 1975. “Dimensions of the average pore, the number of pores, and the surface area of hardened portland cement paste.” Cem. Concr. Res. 5 (5): 433–442. https://doi.org/10.1016/0008-8846(75)90018-6.
Obiri-Nyarko, F., S. J. Grajales-Mesa, and G. Malina. 2014. “An overview of permeable reactive barriers for in-situ sustainable groundwater remediation.” Chemosphere 111: 243–259. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2014.03.112.
Ogata, A., and R. B. Banks. 1961. A solution of the differential equation of longitudinal dispersion in porous media. Washington, DC: US Geological Survey.
Pathirage, U., and B. Indraratna. 2015. “Assessment of optimum width and longevity of a permeable reactive barrier installed in an acid sulfate soil terrain.” Can. Geotech. J. 52 (7): 999–1004. https://doi.org/10.1139/cgj-2014-0310.
Peppas, A., K. Komnitsas, and I. Halikia. 2000. “Use of organic covers for acid mine drainage control.” Min. Eng. 13 (5): 563–574. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0892-6875(00)00036-4.
Powers, T. C., and T. L. Brownyard. 1948. Studies of the physical properties of hardened cement pastes. Skokie, IL: Portland Cement Association.
Puls, R. W., D. W. Blowes, and R. W. Gillham. 1999. “Long-term performance monitoring for a permeable reactive barrier at the US coast guard support center, Elizabeth City, North Carolina.” J. Hazard. Mater. 68 (1–2): 109–124. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0304-3894(99)00034-5.
Rahmana, R. O. A., O. A. A. Moamena, M. Hanafy, and N. M. A. Monem. 2012. “Preliminary investigation of zinc transport through zeolite-X barrier: Linear isotherm assumption.” Chem. Eng. J. 185–186: 61–70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2012.01.015.
Roh, Y., S. Y. Lee, and M. P. Elless. 2000. “Characterisation of corrosion products in the permeable reactive barriers.” Environ. Geol. 40 (1–2): 184–194. https://doi.org/10.1007/s002540000178.
Seneviratne, M. 2007. A practical approach to water conservation for commercial and industrial facilities, 372. Oxford, UK: Elsevier.
Shabalala, A. N. 2013. “Assessment of locally available reactive materials for use in permeable reactive barriers (PRBs) in remediating acid mine drainage.” Water SA 39 (2): 251–256.
Shabalala, A. N., S. Diop, and S. O. Ekolu. 2014. “Permeable reactive barriers for acid mine drainage treatment: A review.” Constr. Mater. Struct. 1416–1426. https://doi.org/10.3233/978-1-61499-466-4-1416.
Shabalala, A. N., S. O. Ekolu, S. Diop, and F. Solomon. 2017. “Pervious concrete reactive barrier for removal of heavy metals from acid mine drainage: Column study.” J. Hazard. Mater. 323 (Part B): 641–653. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2016.10.027.
Skripkiūnas, G., V. Sasnauskas, M. Daukšys, and D. Palubinskaite. 2007. “Peculiarities of hydration of cement paste with addition of hydrosodalite.” Mater. Sci. Poland 25 (3): 627–635.
Smith, E. H. 1996. “Uptake of heavy metals in batch systems by a recycled iron-bearing material.” Water Res. 30 (10): 2424–2434. https://doi.org/10.1016/0043-1354(96)00105-4.
Statham, T. M., L. R. Mason, K. A. Mumford, and G. W. Stevens. 2015. “The specific reactive surface area of granular zero-valent iron in metal contaminant removal: Column experiments and modelling.” Water Res. 77: 24–34. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2015.03.007.
Thiruvenkatachari, R., S. Vigneswaran, and R. Naidu. 2008. “Permeable reactive barrier for groundwater remediation.” J. Ind. Eng. Chem. 14 (2): 145–156. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jiec.2007.10.001.
Thomas, J. J., H. M. Jennings, and A. J. Allen. 1998. “The surface area of cement paste as measured by neutron scattering-evidence of two C-S-H morphologies.” Cem. Concr. Res. 28 (6): 897–905. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0008-8846(98)00049-0.
Thomas, J. J., H. M. Jennings, and A. J. Allen. 1999. “The surface area of hardened cement paste as measured by various techniques.” Concr. Sci. Eng. 1 (1): 45–64.
USEPA. 1999. Understanding variation in partition coefficient, kd, values. Vol. 1: The Kd model, methods of measurement, and application of chemical reaction codes, 341. Washington, DC: USEPA.
USEPA. 2002. Field applications of in situ remediation technologies: Permeable reactive barriers, 30. Washington, DC: USEPA.
Van Genuchten, M. T. 1981. “Analytical solutions for chemical transport with simultaneous adsorption, zero order production and first order decay.” J. Hydrol. 49 (3–4): 213–233. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1694(81)90214-6.
Wantanaphong, J., S. J. Mooney, and E. H. Bailey. 2006. “Quantification of pore clogging characteristics in potential permeable reactive barrier (PRB) substrates using image analysis.” J. Contam. Hydrol. 86 (3–4): 299–320. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jconhyd.2006.04.003.
Yabusaki, S., K. Cantrell, B. Sass, and C. Steefel. 2001. “Multicomponent reactive transport in an insitu zero-valent iron cell.” Environ. Sci. Technol. 35 (7): 1493–1503. https://doi.org/10.1021/es001209f.
Zhou, D., et al. 2014. “Column test-based optimization of the permeable reactive barrier (PRB) technique for remediating groundwater contaminated by landfill leachates.” J. Contam. Hydrol. 168: 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jconhyd.2014.09.003.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 144 • Issue 9 • September 2018
Copyright
©2018 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 4, 2017
Accepted: Feb 12, 2018
Published online: Jun 21, 2018
Published in print: Sep 1, 2018
Discussion open until: Nov 21, 2018
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.