Formatted Title
Thermal Remediation for a Redevelopment Project in Brazil
Background/Objectives
An old industrial site that is contaminated with CVOCs is now surrounded by residential housing. The source of the contamination is located upgradient from the site and therefore a concrete hydraulic barrier was installed to separate the target treatment area from the upgradient source. The client objectives are to achieve concentrations below residential standards for groundwater as quickly as possible.
Approach/Activities
The treatment area consisted of 1445 m2 in which 57 electrodes were installed to cover the treatment area. A physical concrete barrier was installed to 10 meters below grade surface at the perimeter of the site to prevent contaminated groundwater from recontamination the treated area. The estimated treatment time required is between 100-135 days of operations. When the thermal system started the heating rate was excellent, suggesting that the heating model was correct. One month after the system started, we already reached boiling temperatures in parts of the site. Due to the needs of the client a residential sales booth was installed right next to the treatment area and sales began even before the thermal remediation operation began.
Results/Lessons Learned
The remediation is still ongoing, and first data show very good progress, so the site should be remediated by December 2023. Due to the client schedule, installation and operations are being monitored very closely to ensure no delay in construction of the first residential condominium.