In situ method and apparatus for biodegradation of alkyl ethers and tertiary butyl alcohol
AssigneeShell Oil Company
InventorsJoseph Patrick Salanitro, Paul Carr Johnson, Stephen Merle Stearns, Paul Michael Maner, James Henry Miller, Gerard Eugene Spinnler
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for the in situ purification of aquifers contaminated with ethers and/or alcohols using a bacterial culture, a method of delivering the culture to the subsurface, and an oxygen delivery system.
Claims18
A method for in situ remediation of an aquifer having a treatment zone through which passes water contaminated with at least one chemical contaminant which method comprises:
- injecting into the aquifer, by at least two conduits, an oxygen-containing gas at a pressure of at least 5 psig above the hydrostatic pressure at injection points;
- wherein the volume of oxygen-containing gas injected each time at each injection point contains from about 1 to about 100 times of minimum average volume (Vmin) in cubic feet of total oxygen, measured at ambient temperature and ambient pressure, Wherein Vmin can be calculated as:
- V min=0.1×A×B×P÷N
- Wherein
- A=treated area (square ft)
- B=treatment thickness (ft)
- P=porosity
- N=number of injection points.
A method for in situ remediation of an aquifer having a treatment zone through which passes water contaminated with at least one chemical contaminant, which method comprises injecting into the aquifer, by at least two conduits, an oxygen-containing gas at a pressure of at least 5 psig above the hydrostatic pressure at injection points by pulsed injection at a frequency from about once a week to about ten times a day, wherein each injection of oxygen-containing gas at each injection point lasts from about 0.05 to about 4 minutes.
A method for in situ remediation of an aquifer having a treatment zone through which passes water contaminated with at least one chemical contaminant, which method comprises injecting into the aquifer, by at least two conduits, an oxygen-containing gas at a pressure of at least 5 psig above the hydrostatic pressure at injection points with injection frequency and volume at each injection point having the relationship according to the following equation:
- e[(−V×F×N×H)/(W×B×Q)]>0.50
- Wherein:
- e=natural exponential
- V=volume of gas injected at each injection point (ft3)
- F=frequency of injections (number of injections per day)
- N=number of gas injection points
- W=width of the treatment zone perpendicular to groundwater flow path (ft)
- B=vertical thickness of treatment zone (ft)
- Q=specific discharge of ground water to the treatment zone (ft/day)
- H=Henry's Constant for contaminant of interest ((mg/L-water)/(mg/L-air)).
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.