Counter-Diffusion of Isotopically Labeled Trichloroethylene in Silica Gel and Geosorbent Micropores: Model Development

Abstract

A new model was developed to determine if reduced uptake rates observed during isotope exchange experiments could plausibly be attributed to sterically hindered counter-diffusion in one-dimensional micropores. During exchange experiments, hydrogenated trichloroethylene ({sup 1}HTCE) was displaced with deuterated TCE (DTCE) in the slow-desorbing sites of a silica gel, a groundwater sediment, and a clay and silt fraction. To describe this process, the model accounts for co- and counter-diffusion of TCE isotopes in one-dimensional micropores, where each micropore type is defined by a single codiffusion rate constant and a single counter-diffusion rate constant. For silica gel, isotope exchange was simulated in a single micropore type. For geosorbents, isotope exchange was simulated in a distribution of micropore types characterized by a {gamma} distribution of diffusion rate constants. Simulation results indicate that (1) the proposed model accounts for the mechanisms controlling isotope exchange in the silica gel and the groundwater sediment and (2) the rate of counter-diffusion is up to 6 times slower than the rate of codiffusion. This suggests that steric hindrance between counter-diffusing sorbates can significantly affect mass transfer and, consequently, the transport of chemical mixtures in the subsurface.