Battelle 2018 Highlights

Thank you to everyone who stopped by our booth at this year’s Battelle conference in Palm Springs!
Feel free to reach out to us to learn more about our current work.

Some highlights from the Battelle conference:

• Estimating Biodegradation Rates of Chlorinated Organics in the Vadose Zone using NSZD Techniques

The biodegradation of chlorinated organics results in the stoichiometric production of small-chain non-chlorinated organics (e.g., ethane, ethene). These are easily transformed into CO₂, meaning that it may be possible to capture chlorinated solvent-derived CO₂ using fossil fuel traps to monitor natural attenuation rates.

Natural Source Zone Depletion Studies at the Botany Groundwater Cleanup Program
Presentation - C. Newell, P. Kulkarni, J. Stening, J. Fairweather, L. Alexander, J. Zimbron

Coupled Radiocarbon and Short-Term Incubations Measure In Situ Hydrocarbon Degradation Rates
Presentation - T.J. Boyd, R.H. Cuenca, Y. Hagimoto, M.T. Montgomery

• Natural Source Zone Depletion of LNAPL: A Key Part of Petroleum Contaminant Management

NSZD has been recognized as a strong contributor to the degradation of petroleum in soil. Often, NSZD rates outpace conventional remediation efforts, and can be used as a line of evidence to close contaminated sites. A panel discussion together with dozens of platform presentations, posters, and learning labs highlighted the importance of NSZD at this year’s conference. 

Passive CO₂ Flux Traps for Measuring Field NSZD Rates
Learning Lab - J. Zimbron

Natural Source Zone Depletion (NSZD): Treatment Train Engine or Caboose?
Panel - B. Bekins, S. Garg, J. Meredith, T. Sale, N. Sihota, J. Zimbron

Monitoring of Air Injection Remediation Systems Using Carbon Dioxide Efflux Measurements
Poster - J. Fitzgibbons, D. Downey, R. Hinchee, J. Zimbron

• Measuring LNAPL NSZD Rates Using Soil Temperatures

Most accepted methods for measuring NSZD rates are based on mass balances and on the measurement of soil CO₂ flux. Similarly, the production of biogenic heat can be used to measure NSZD using heat fluxes, which are based on measured thermal gradients within a soil column. These thermal gradients are affected by ambient and groundwater temperatures, and by the heat released from biodegradation reactions. 

Temperature Effects on Petroleum NSZD Processes: Lessons from Coupled Heat Transfer and
Heat Generation Modeling
Presentation - J. Zimbron, J. DiMarzio, G. Silco

The Potential for Natural Source Zone Depletion of Petroleum Hydrocarbons in Tropical Environments
Poster - T. Simpkin, T. Palaia, M. Gatan, A. Lee, J. Zimbron

Bio-Therm: A Model for Temperature Effects on NSZD
Learning Lab - J. Zimbron

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