Formulation of a Dusty Gas Model for Multi-Component Diffusion in the Gas Phase of Soil

Abstract

Soil vapor extraction and bio-venting have been utilized for purification of contaminated soil or groundwater. It is necessary to predict the movement of gas phase components in soil for the design of soil vapor extraction and bio-venting systems. Though chemical substances migrate with advection and diffusion in gas phase of soil, we investigated multi-component diffusion systems in gas phase of soil. Numerical modeling for multi-component diffusion is useful to the prediction of the movement of components. A dusty gas model for multi-component diffusion systems has not so far been formulated by the Finite Element Method; furthermore it has not been applied for assessing the movement of components in the gas phase of soil. Accordingly, a dusty gas model for three gas phase components was formulated by the Finite Element Method in this study, and the concentrations of components in binary and multi-component gas systems were calculated by numerical methods developed in this study. As a result, it was found that the dusty gas model must be applied for study of diffusion in a multi-component gas system; and the study showed that the difference between molecular weights of gas phase components influenced the movement of components in the gas system.