Remediation method

Abstract

A method is provided to remove volatile liquid contaminates from a contaminated volume of earth, the contaminated volume lying above a noncontaminated layer of earth, the method including the steps of: penetrating the contaminated volume with at least one wellbore so that a wellbore penetrates the contaminated volume and at least one wellbore penetrates the noncontaminated layer; applying heat from the wellbore within the noncontaminated layer to the noncontaminated layer until the temperature of a substantial portion of the noncontaminated layer that is contiguous with the contaminated layer is at least the boiling point temperature of contaminated liquids; and applying heat from the wellbore within the contaminated volume to the contaminated volume wherein the temperature of the contaminated volume rises to the boiling point of contaminated liquids after a substantial portion of the noncontaminated layer that is contiguous with the contaminated layer is about the boiling point of the contaminated liquids.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.