Radio Frequency Heating for Soil Remediation

Abstract

ABSTRACT Radio frequency heating (RFH) is a technology that increases the cost-effectiveness of a variety of site remediation technologies by accelerating the rate of contaminant removal. Heating makes the physical, chemical, and biological properties of materials such as contaminants, soil, and groundwater more amenable to remediation. RFH brings controlled heating to the subsurface, enhancing the removal of contaminants by soil vapor extraction (SVE), groundwater aeration (air sparging), bioremediation, and product recovery. The results presented are from a bench-scale study and a field demonstration that both used RFH to enhance the performance of SVE. The bench-scale study performed on PCE-contaminated soil revealed an increase, by a factor of 8, in the removal rate when RFH was used to heat soil to 90 °C. The application of RFH for a three-week period at a former gasoline station near St. Paul, MN, resulted in raising the ambient soil temperature from 8 °C to 100 °C in the immediate vicinity of the RFH applicator and to 40 °C 1.5 m (5 ft) away. Most significantly, the use of an integrated RFH/SVE system achieved an overall 50% reduction in gasoline range organics (GRO) in soil over a two- to three-month period. The discussion includes applications of RFH for enhancing bioremediation and product recovery.