Zone of flow: A new finding on the characteristics of airflow within the zone of influence during air sparging in aquifers.

Cheng, K; Zhang, T; Peng, K; Feng, Y; Liu, H; Medawela, S

Zone of flow: A new finding on the characteristics of airflow within the zone of influence during air sparging in aquifers.

Cheng, K Zhang, T Peng, K Feng, Y Liu, H Medawela, S

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Publisher:: Elsevier
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: J Contam Hydrol, 2023, 255, pp. 104165
Issue Date:: 2023-04

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Cheng, K
dc.contributor.author	Zhang, T
dc.contributor.author	Peng, K
dc.contributor.author	Feng, Y
dc.contributor.author	Liu, H
dc.contributor.author	Medawela, S
dc.date.accessioned	2023-05-06T07:30:10Z
dc.date.available	2023-02-13
dc.date.available	2023-05-06T07:30:10Z
dc.date.issued	2023-04
dc.identifier.citation	J Contam Hydrol, 2023, 255, pp. 104165
dc.identifier.issn	0169-7722
dc.identifier.issn	1873-6009
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/170252
dc.description.abstract	Air sparging (AS) is a popular technology for the in-situ remediation of groundwater contaminated by volatile organic compounds. The scope of the zone within which injected air exists, i.e., zone of influence (ZOI) and the airflow characteristics within ZOI are of great interest. However, few studies have shed light on the scope of the zone within which air flows, namely, the zone of flow (ZOF) and its relation with the scope of ZOI. This study focuses on the ZOF characteristics and its relation with ZOI based on quantitative observations of ZOF and ZOI using a quasi-2D transparent flow chamber. The relative transmission intensity obtained by the light transmission method presents a rapid and continuous increasing near the ZOI boundary, providing a criterion for the quantitative determination of ZOI. An integral airflow flux approach is proposed to determine the scope of ZOF based on the airflow flux distributions through aquifers. The ZOF radius decreases with the growth of particle sizes of aquifers; while it increases first and then keeps constant with the increase of sparging pressure. The ZOF radius is around 0.55- 0.82 times of the ZOI radius, which depends on air flow patterns related to particle diameters dp, that is, 0.55- 0.62 for channel flow (dp < 1- 2 mm), while 0.75- 0.82 for bubble flow (dp > 2- 3 mm). The experimental results show that the sparged air is entrapped with little flowing inside ZOI regions that are outside the ZOF, which should be considered carefully in the design of AS.
dc.format	Print-Electronic
dc.language	eng
dc.publisher	Elsevier
dc.relation.ispartof	J Contam Hydrol
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1016/j.jconhyd.2023.104165
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/closedAccess
dc.subject.classification	Environmental Engineering
dc.title	Zone of flow: A new finding on the characteristics of airflow within the zone of influence during air sparging in aquifers.
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	255
utslib.location.activity	Netherlands
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology/School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
utslib.copyright.status	closed_access	*
dc.date.updated	2023-05-06T07:29:26Z
pubs.publication-status	Published
pubs.volume	255

Abstract:

Air sparging (AS) is a popular technology for the in-situ remediation of groundwater contaminated by volatile organic compounds. The scope of the zone within which injected air exists, i.e., zone of influence (ZOI) and the airflow characteristics within ZOI are of great interest. However, few studies have shed light on the scope of the zone within which air flows, namely, the zone of flow (ZOF) and its relation with the scope of ZOI. This study focuses on the ZOF characteristics and its relation with ZOI based on quantitative observations of ZOF and ZOI using a quasi-2D transparent flow chamber. The relative transmission intensity obtained by the light transmission method presents a rapid and continuous increasing near the ZOI boundary, providing a criterion for the quantitative determination of ZOI. An integral airflow flux approach is proposed to determine the scope of ZOF based on the airflow flux distributions through aquifers. The ZOF radius decreases with the growth of particle sizes of aquifers; while it increases first and then keeps constant with the increase of sparging pressure. The ZOF radius is around 0.55- 0.82 times of the ZOI radius, which depends on air flow patterns related to particle diameters dp, that is, 0.55- 0.62 for channel flow (dp < 1- 2 mm), while 0.75- 0.82 for bubble flow (dp > 2- 3 mm). The experimental results show that the sparged air is entrapped with little flowing inside ZOI regions that are outside the ZOF, which should be considered carefully in the design of AS.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/170252