Application of Geochemistry and Molecular Biological Tools at a Southeast Asia Groundwater Remediation Site

摘要

A variety of tools were used to demonstrate that declining benzene concentrations at a field site in Southeast Asia (the “Site”) are due, in part, to intrinsic biodegradation prior to air sparging (AS) and soil vapor extraction (SVE). Geochemical indicators suggested the existence of anaerobic conditions in groundwater. Two-dimensional Compound Specific Isotope Analysis (CSIA) measuring changes in stable isotope ratios for both carbon and hydrogen was used to demonstrate benzene biodegradation at the Site. The results of Bio-Sep~R1 technology deploying “biotraps” coupled with stable isotope probing in monitoring wells confirmed the anaerobic biodegradation of benzene.