CA2465924A1 - Dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus - Google Patents

Dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus Download PDF

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Publication number
CA2465924A1
CA2465924A1 CA 2465924 CA2465924A CA2465924A1 CA 2465924 A1 CA2465924 A1 CA 2465924A1 CA 2465924 CA2465924 CA 2465924 CA 2465924 A CA2465924 A CA 2465924A CA 2465924 A1 CA2465924 A1 CA 2465924A1
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CA
Canada
Prior art keywords
air
groundwater
holding tank
well
supply conduit
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Abandoned
Application number
CA 2465924
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Brian D. Strilchuk
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Individual
Original Assignee
Individual
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Individual filed Critical Individual
Priority to CA 2465924 priority Critical patent/CA2465924A1/en
Publication of CA2465924A1 publication Critical patent/CA2465924A1/en
Abandoned legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • BPERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B09DISPOSAL OF SOLID WASTE; RECLAMATION OF CONTAMINATED SOIL
    • B09CRECLAMATION OF CONTAMINATED SOIL
    • B09C1/00Reclamation of contaminated soil

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  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Soil Sciences (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Environmental & Geological Engineering (AREA)
  • Physical Water Treatments (AREA)
  • Processing Of Solid Wastes (AREA)

Abstract

A dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus having an air blower with a blower discharge conduit, which places the air blower in fluid communication with an air diffuser positioned in a lower portion of a groundwater holding tank. Air supplied by the air blower is discharged into the air diffuser and bubbles up though contaminated groundwater in the holding tank, thereby providing an air stripping treatment to the contaminated groundwater. A first air supply conduit supplies air from atmosphere to the air blower and a second air supply conduit supplies air from the well to the air blower. When the second air supply conduit is used, a suction force is applied to the well to extract hydrocarbon vapours.
A float activated valve selectively switches between the first air supply conduit and the second air supply conduit, depending upon the groundwater level in the holding tank.

Description

TITLE OF THE INVENTION:
Dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a soil remediation apparatus for use in treating soils contaminated by hydrocarbons, which is capable to dealing with both liquid phase and gas phase contaminants.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Whenever it is not practical to remove contaminated soil, the soil must be treated in situ. For successful soil remediation, one may require an apparatus capable of treating liquid phase contaminants, an apparatus capable of treating gas phase contaminants or both types of apparatus.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
What is required is a dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus.
According to the present invention there is provided a dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus which includes means for connection with a well. A
groundwater 2 0 holding tank is provided having a groundwater feed inlet through which contaminated groundwater is fed into the holding tank from the well and a treated groundwater outlet. The level of groundwater in the holding tank fluctuates with the level of groundwater in the well.
An air diffuser is positioned in a lower portion of the holding tank. An air blower is provided having a blower discharge conduit which places the air blower in fluid communication with 2 5 the air diffuser. Air supplied by the air blower is discharged into the air diffuser and bubbles up though contaminated groundwater in the holding tank thereby providing an air stripping treatment to the contaminated groundwater. A first air supply conduit is provided, which is adapted to supply air from atmosphere to the air blower. A second air supply conduit is provided, which adapted to supply air from the well to the air blower. When the second air 3 0 supply conduit is used a suction force is applied to the well to extract hydrocarbon vapours from surrounding soils into the well. A float activated valve is provided which is adapted to selectively switch between the first air supply conduit and the second air supply conduit, depending upon the groundwater level in the holding tank. The use of the float activated valve enable vapour extraction to be performed whenever groundwater levels in the well are low, as determined by the relative level of groundwater in the holding tank.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
These and other features of the invention will become more apparent from the following description in which reference is made to the appended drawings, the drawings are for the purpose of illustration only and are not intended to in any way limit the scope of the invention to the particular embodiment or embodiments shown, wherein:
FIGURE 1 is a side elevation view, in section, of a dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present invention.
FIGURE 2 is a side elevation view, in section, of a dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus illustrated in FIGURE 1, air stripping mode due to relatively high water levels.
FIGURE 3 is a side elevation view, in section, of a dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus illustrated in FIGURE 1, vapour extraction mode due to relatively low water levels.
FIGURE 4 is a side elevation view, in section, of a dual phase contaminated soil 2 0 remediation apparatus illustrated in FIGURE 1, in an overflow mode.
FIGURE 5 is a side elevation view, in section, of a dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus illustrated in FIGURE 1, in a cleaning mode.

The preferred embodiment, a dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus generally identified by reference numeral 10, will now be described with reference to FIGURES 1 through 5.
3 0 Structure and Relationship of Parts:
Referring now to FIGURE 1, there is shown dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus 10. Apparatus 10 is connected to a well 12 by connection 14. There is a ground water holding tank 16, which has a groundwater feed inlet 18 and a treated groundwater outlet 19. Water is pumped from well 12 to holding tank 16 through groundwater feed inlet 18 by a pump 21, which is responsive to the level of groundwater in well 12. The flow of contaminated groundwater may be controlled by flow control valve 17.
Contaminated groundwater is fed into holding tank 16 from well 12 through groundwater feed inlet 18. The level of groundwater in holding tank 16 fluctuates with the level of groundwater in well 12, but, as shown in FIGURES 2 to 4, the level only drops to just below treated groundwater outlet 19, and is prevented from rising above a holding tank overflow 36. Referring again to FIGURE l, an air diffuser 22 is positioned in a lower portion of holding tank 16. There is an air blower 24 and a blower discharge conduit 26 that places air blower 24 in fluid communication with air diffuser 22, as well as a exhaust conduit 25 at the top of holding tank 16. Referring to FIGURE 2, in this arrangement, air supplied by air blower 24 is discharged into air diffuser 22 and bubbles up through contaminated groundwater 20 in holding tank 16 thereby providing an "air stripping"
treatment to contaminated groundwater 20, which may also be referred to as "air sparging".
A first air supply conduit 28 is adapted to supply air from atmosphere to air blower 24. A
second air supply conduit 30 is adapted to supply air from well 12 to air blower 24, such that a suction force is applied to well 12 to extract hydrocarbon vapours from surrounding soils 32 into well 2 0 12. A float activated valve generally indicated by 34 is adapted to selectively switch between first air supply conduit 28 and second air supply conduit 30 depending upon the groundwater levels in well 12, as determined by the relative level of groundwater in holding tank 16. Float activated valve 34 includes a float 46 within a housing 48, with float 46 connected by a rod 50 to an air control shuttle 52 within an air control assembly 54. As float 46 rises or falls, air 2 5 control shuttle rises or falls accordingly, such that air is diverted through different conduits.
A holding tank overflow 36 is provided, which diverts excess groundwater 20 back to well 12. Overflow 36 includes a housing 37 with a float 39 within. As water enters housing 37, float 39 rises and unstops the overflow return line 41.
3 0 Referring now to FIGURE 5, a cleaning circuit 38, which is isolated by valves 17, 39, and 43 connects holding tank overflow 36 to groundwater feed inlet 18. A
circulation pump 44 permits cleaning solution 42 to be circulated through groundwater feed inlet 18 into holding tank 16, out holding tank overflow 36 and then through cleaning circuit 38 and back through groundwater feed inlet 18 to holding tank 16. Cleaning solution is introduced through a container 40. Circulation pump 44 is placed within container 40, such that cleaning solution 42 is drawn from container 40 through circuit 38. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that other methods of introducing cleaning solution are possible.
Operation:
The operation of dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus 10 will now be discussed with reference to FIGURES 1 to 5. Apparatus 10 is installed as shown in FIGURE 1. In FIGURES 2 to 4, the arrows represent the direction of air flow.
Refernng to FIGURE 2, apparatus 10 is in an air stripping mode. Pump 21 is activated by the level of groundwater in well 12. As pump 21 pumps groundwater from well 12, holding tank 16 and housing 48 fills with groundwater 20. As groundwater rises in housing 48, float 46 is forced upward, which in turn forces air control shuttle 52 to a raised position, so that air blower 24 draws air from atmosphere through first air supply conduit 28. The air is transmitted through air diffuser 22, such that the air bubbles up through contaminated groundwater 20 in holding tank 16 thereby providing an air stripping treatment. The air is then discharged through 2 0 exhaust conduit 25. Treated groundwater exits from holding tank 16 through treated groundwater outlet 19. Refernng now to FIGURE 3, there is illustrated a vapour extraction mode. As the level of groundwater in well 12 drops, pump 21 is deactivated and the water in housing 48 exits. As the level of water in housing 48 falls, float 46 and air control shuttle 52 also fall. Once air control shuttle 52 is in a lowered position, air is drawn by air blower 24 2 5 from well 12, which causes contaminated air to be drawn from surrounding soils 32. Air is circulated through air blower 24 and out first air supply conduit 28 which acts as an exhaust conduit in this situation. Referring now to FIGURE 4, apparatus 10 is in an overflow mode.
If a problem occurs, such as treated groundwater outlet 19 becoming plugged, excess groundwater enters housing 39 causing float 37 in holding tank overflow 36 to rise. Once 3 0 float 37 rises, excess groundwater is diverted through overflow diversion line 41 back into well 12. Refernng to FIGURE 5, apparatus 10 is in a cleaning mode. It is preferable to regularly clean apparatus 10 for preventative maintenance and to prolong the working life.

With previous devices, cleaning required partial disassembly. The present invention enables cleaning without such disassembly. Air blower 24 and pump 21 are not required for this and may be shut off. Valves 12, 39 and 43 are closed to isolate cleaning circuit 38. Circulation pump 44 circulates cleaning solution 42 from container 40 along cleaning circuit 38, into 5 groundwater feed inlet 18 of holding tank 16, out of holding tank 16 into holding tank overflow 36, then through cleaning circuit 38 back to container 40. This is cycle through cleaning circuit 38 is repeated numerous tunes to ensure that all deposits are flushed from holding tank 16 by cleaning solution 42.
In this patent document, the word "comprising" is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article "a" does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be one and only one of the elements.
It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that modifications may be made to the illustrated embodiment without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter defined in the Claims. For example, as is known in the art, water from a well may 2 0 be pumped to a phase separation tank to remove floating contaminants, such as oil. Water may then be pumped from the bottom of this tank to the holding tank for treatment, leaving the contaminants floating in the tank. Also, filters may be required in some jusrisdictions to further clean the discharges. These, and other requirements, may be included according to the situation.

Claims (3)

1. A dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus, comprising:
means for connection with a well;
a groundwater holding tank having a groundwater feed inlet through which contaminated groundwater is fed into the holding tank from the well and a treated groundwater outlet, the level of groundwater in the holding tank fluctuating with the level of groundwater in the well;
an air diffuser positioned in a lower portion of the holding tank;
an air blower;
a blower discharge conduit placing the air blower in fluid communication with the air diffuser, whereby air supplied by the air blower is discharged into the air diffuser and bubbles up though contaminated groundwater in the holding tank thereby providing an air stripping treatment to the contaminated groundwater;
a first air supply conduit adapted to supply air from atmosphere to the air blower;
a second air supply conduit adapted to supply air from the well to the air blower, such that a suction force is applied to the well to extract hydrocarbon vapours from surrounding soils into the well;
a float activated valve adapted to selectively switch between the first air supply conduit and the second air supply conduit depending upon the groundwater level in the holding tank, such that vapour extraction is performed whenever groundwater levels in the well are low as determined by the relative level of groundwater in the holding tank.
2. T'he dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus as defined in Claim 1, wherein a holding tank overflow is provided which diverts excess groundwater back to the well.
3. The dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus as defined in Claim 2, wherein a cleaning circuit connects the holding tank overflow to the groundwater feed inlet, the cleaning circuit being isolated by valves, the cleaning circuit having means for introducing a cleaning solution into the cleaning circuit and a circulation pump which permits cleaning solution to be circulated through the groundwater feed inlet into the holding tank, out the holding tank overflow and then through the cleaning circuit and back through the groundwater feed inlet to the holding tank.
CA 2465924 2004-05-11 2004-05-11 Dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus Abandoned CA2465924A1 (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
CA 2465924 CA2465924A1 (en) 2004-05-11 2004-05-11 Dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
CA 2465924 CA2465924A1 (en) 2004-05-11 2004-05-11 Dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus

Publications (1)

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CA2465924A1 true CA2465924A1 (en) 2005-11-11

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CA 2465924 Abandoned CA2465924A1 (en) 2004-05-11 2004-05-11 Dual phase contaminated soil remediation apparatus

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CA (1) CA2465924A1 (en)

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN115502193A (en) * 2022-10-25 2022-12-23 生态环境部南京环境科学研究所 Complete equipment and method for repairing polluted site based on in-situ thermal desorption technology

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CN115502193A (en) * 2022-10-25 2022-12-23 生态环境部南京环境科学研究所 Complete equipment and method for repairing polluted site based on in-situ thermal desorption technology

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