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- Title
Combining Radon Deficit, NAPL Concentration, and Groundwater Table Dynamics to Assess Soil and Groundwater Contamination by NAPLs and Related Attenuation Processes.
- Authors
Mattia, Martina; Tuccimei, Paola; Ciotoli, Giancarlo; Soligo, Michele; Carusi, Claudio; Rainaldi, Elisa; Voltaggio, Mario
- Abstract
Featured Application: Radon deficit reveals the presence of residual NAPL(Non-Aqueous Phase Liquid) contamination in soil and groundwater, giving a good picture of their vertical and spatial location. A combined and repeated approach consisting of measurements of radon and NAPL concentration coupled with groundwater table dynamics makes it possible to assess the evolution of the contamination phenomena. The application ofexploratory factor and principal component analyses to this dataset provides a key to understanding the attenuation processes, whether natural or induced, by the application of mitigation practices, and delivers models (conceptual and mathematical) to manage the site reclamation. Soil and groundwater contamination by NAPLs (Non-Aqueous Phase Liquids) is certainly a big issue for protecting the environment. In situ clean-up actions are routinely applied to mitigate the risk and are supplemented by monitoring surveys to assess the degree, extension, and evolution of the contamination. Radon gas is here used as a tracer of contamination because of its high solubility in non-polar solvents that produce a reduced concentration of the gas in polluted soil and groundwater with reference to radon levels in adjacent "clean" areas. This approach was employed in two sites where gasoline and diesel spillage occurred, causing soil and groundwater contamination. The two case studies were chosen because of their difference in terms of the hydrogeological features, age of the spillage, composition of residual NAPLs, and clean-up measures to test the advantages and limits of this approach in a variety of settings. Radon data, NAPL concentration in the groundwater (mainly total hydrocarbons, Methyl Tertiary-Butyl Ether and Ethyl Tertiary-Butyl Ether) and the depth of the groundwater table were periodically collected in surveys that spanned a period of two years. This dataset was statistically processed using principal component analysis to unravel which factors and attenuation processes are working in the sites and the response of the radon deficit approach to this complex series of phenomena concurrently occurring there.
- Subjects
SOIL pollution; WATER table; NONAQUEOUS phase liquids; SOIL dynamics; RADON; PRINCIPAL components analysis; HYDROGEOLOGY
- Publication
Applied Sciences (2076-3417), 2023, Vol 13, Issue 23, p12813
- ISSN
2076-3417
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.3390/app132312813