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SOLAR HEATING, HEAT EXCHANGE SPEEDS UP GROUNDWATER REMEDIATION PROCESS
Coyle, C., W. Davis, and P. Zhang.
The Corps Environment 19(3):17-19(2018)

The Fort Drum Installation Restoration Program (IRP) team successfully demonstrated the application of an innovative, inexpensive, and environmentally sustainable remediation technology called thermal in situ sustainable remediation (TISR) (U.S. patent pending). TISR utilizes solar energy to enhance the remediation of soil and groundwater via a closed-loop system consisting of evacuated tube solar collectors, borehole heat exchangers, heat-transfer fluid (glycol), insulated tubing, and a solar-powered pump to circulate the heat transfer fluid from the solar heaters to the subsurface. The system increases groundwater temperature only by ~10-15°C. In most cases, vapor extraction is not required. TISR offers (1) increased bioremediation rates, (2) up to a 50% reduction in life-cycle costs, (3) potential for a ten-fold reduction in carbon dioxide emissions, and (4) effectiveness in complex subsurface geology. Given the success of the pilot study at Area 3805 to address BTEX and trimethylbenzene, the IRP team transitioned the TISR system to a mobile platform to facilitate electricity-free application of solar heat to targeted problem areas. Go to page 13 of 25 in the PDF page counter at https://www.dvidshub.net/publication/issues/41680.



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