[en] Field and laboratory investigations have been conducted at a former coke plant, in order to assess pollutant attenuation in a contaminated alluvial aquifer, discharging to an adjacent river. Various organic (BTEX, PAHs, mineral oils) and inorganic (As, Zn, Cd) compounds were found in the aquifer in concentrations exceeding regulatory values. Due to redox conditions of the aquifer, heavy metals were almost immobile, thus not posing a major risk of dispersion off-site the brownfield. Field and laboratory investigations demonstrated that benzene, among organic pollutants, presented the major worry for off-site dispersion, mainly due to its mobility and high concentration, i.e. up to 750 mg L 1 in the source zone.
However, benzene could never be detected near the river which is about 160 m downgradient the main source. Redox conditions together with benzene concentrations determined in the aquifer have suggested that degradation mainly occurred within 100 m distance from the contaminant source under anoxic conditions, and most probably with sulphate as main oxidant. A numerical groundwater flow and transport model, calibrated under transient conditions, was used to simulate benzene attenuation in the alluvial aquifer towards the Meuse River. The mean benzene degradation rate used in the model was quantified in situ along the groundwater flow path using compound-specific carbon isotope analysis (CSIA). The results of the solute transport simulations confirmed that benzene concentrations decreased almost five orders of magnitude 70 m downgradient the source. Simulated concentrations have been found to be below the detection limit in the zone adjacent to the river and consistent with the absence of benzene in downgradient piezometers located close to the river reported in groundwater sampling campaigns. In a transient model scenario including groundwater–surface water dynamics, benzene concentrations were observed to be inversely correlated to the river water levels, leading to the hypothesis that benzene dispersion is mainly controlled by natural attenuation.
Alvarez, P.J.J., Illman, W.A., (2006) Bioremediation and natural attenuation: Process fundamentals and mathematical models, , Environmental Science and Technology. John Wiley & Sons, Hoboken, New Jersey, USA, 609 pp
Batlle-Aguilar, J., (2008) Groundwater flow and contaminant transport in an alluvial aquifer: In situ investigation and modelling of a brownfield with strong groundwater-surface water interactions, , Ph.D Thesis. Faculté de Sciences Appliqués, ArGEnCo department, University of Liège, Belgium, 245 pp
Batlle-Aguilar, J., Brouyère, S., 2005. Documentation of site equipment and description of experiments performed and still planned in the former cokery test site A. Deliverable R3.15. Report Basin R3.15. AquaTerra (Integrated Project FP6 no. 505428), 22 pp
Batlle-Aguilar, J., Brouyère, S., 2006. Update on field experiments and description of the groundwater flow and transport model for the cokery site A. Report Basin R3.19. AquaTerra (Integrated Project FP6 no. 505428), 50 pp
Batlle-Aguilar, J., Brouyère, S., 2008. Groundwater flow and transport model for the Flémalle cokery site. Report Basin R3.25. AquaTerra (Integrated Project FP6 no. 505428), 34 pp
Batlle-Aguilar, J., Brouyère, S., Dassargues, A., Diels, L., Vanbroekhoven, K., Hunkeler, D., Morasch, B., Halen, H., Hydrodynamic characterisation of a groundwater-surface water system and evaluation of BTEX, PAHs decay and heavy metal fate (2008) Proceedings of the Conference ConSoil'08, pp. 71-80. , Milano, Italy, Theme G, pp
Blum, P., Hunkeler, D., Weede, M., Beyer, C., Grathwohl, P., Morasch, B., (2008) Quantification of biodegradation for o-xylene and naphthalene using first order decay models, Michaelis-Menten kinetics and stable carbon isotopes. Journal of Contaminant Hydrology, doi:10.1016/j.jconhyd, 11 (9)
Brouyère, S., 2001. Etude et modélisation du transport et du piégeage des solutés en milieu souterrain variablement saturé (study and modelling of transport and retardation of solutes in variably saturated media). Ph.D. Thesis, Faculté des Sciences Appliquées. Laboratoire de géologie de l'ingénieur, d'Hydrogéologie et de Prospection géophysique, Université de Liège, Liège, Belgium, 640 pp
Burland, S.M., Edwards, E.A., Anaerobic benzene biodegradation linked to nitrate reduction (1999) Appl. Environ. Microbiol., 65 (2), pp. 529-533
Cline, J.D., Spectrophotometric determination of hydrogen sulfide in natural waters (1969) Limnol. Oceanogr., 14, pp. 454-458
Conant, B.J., Cherry, J.A., Gillham, R.W., A PCE groundwater plume discharging to a river: influence of the streambed and near-river zone on contaminant distributions (2004) J. Contam. Hydrol., 73, pp. 249-279
de Marsily, G., Lavedan, G., Boucher, M., Fasanino, G., Interpretation of interference tests in a well field using geostatistical techniques to fit the permeability distribution in a reservoir model (1984) Proceedings of Geostatistics for natural resources characterization. Part 2, pp. 831-849. , Verly, et al. (Ed), D. Reidel Pub. Co
Doherty, J., Ground water model calibration using pilot points and regularization (2003) Ground Water, 41 (2), pp. 170-177
Doppler, T., Franssen, H.-J.H., Kaiser, H.-P., Kuhlman, U., Stauffer, F., Field evidence of a dynamic leakage coefficient for modelling river-aquifer interactions (2007) J. Hydrol., 347, pp. 177-187
Fetter, C.W., (1993) Contaminant Hydrogeology, , MacMillan, New York 458 pp
Fischer, A., Herklotz, I., Herrmann, S., Thullner, M., Weelink, S.A.B., Stams, A.J.M., Schlomann, M., Vogt, C., Combined carbon and hydrogen isotope fractionation investigations and elucidating benzene biodegradation pathways (2008) Environ. Sci. Technol., 42 (12), pp. 4356-4363
Fischer, A., Theuerkorn, K., Stelzer, N., Gehre, M., Thullner, M., Richnow, H.H., Applicability of stable isotope fractionation analysis for the characterization of benzene biodegradation in a BTEX-contaminated aquifer (2007) Environ. Sci. Technol., 41, pp. 3689-3696
Fritz, B.G., Arntzen, E.V., Effect of rapidly changing river stage of uranium flux through the hyporheic zone (2007) Ground Water, 45 (6), pp. 753-760
Goto, K., Taguchi, S., Fukue, Y., Ohta, K., Watanabe, H., Spectrophotometric determination of manganese with 1-(2-pyridylazo)-2-naphtol and a non-ionic surfactant (1977) Talanta, 24 (12), pp. 752-753
Griebler, C., Safinowski, M., Vieth, M., Richmond, H.H., Meckenstock, R.U., Combined application of stable isotope analysis and specific metabolites determination for assessing in situ degradation of aromatic hydrocarbons in a tar oil-contaminated aquifer (2004) Envrion. Sci. Technol., 38 (2), pp. 617-631
Ha, K., Koh, D.-C., Yum, B.-W., Lee, K.-K., Estimation of layered diffusivity and river resistance using flood wave response model (2007) J. Hydrol., 337, pp. 284-293
Harbaugh, A.W., Banta, E.R., Hill, M.C., McDonald, M.G., MODFLOW-2000: The US geological survey modular ground-water model. User guide to modularization concepts and the ground-water flow process (2000) Open-File Report, , 00-92. US Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia, 121 pp
Herr, M., Schäfer, G., Spitz, K., Experimental studies of mass transport in porous media with local heterogeneities (1989) J. Contam. Hydrol., 4, pp. 127-137
Hunkeler, D., Andersen, N., Aravena, R., Bernasconi, S.M., Butler, B.J., Hydrogen and carbon isotope fractionation during aerobic biodegradation of benzene (2001) Environ. Sci. Technol., 35 (17), pp. 3462-3467
Hunkeler, D., Höhener, P., Zeyer, J., Engineered and subsequent intrinsic in situ bioremediation of a diesel fuel contaminated aquifer (2002) J. Contam. Hydrol., 59, pp. 231-245
Jha, M.K., Jayalekshmi, K., Machiwal, D., Kamii, Y., Chikamori, K., Determination of hydraulic parameters of an unconfined alluvial aquifer by the floodwave-response technique (2004) Hydrogeol. J., 12, pp. 628-642
Kao, C.M., Wang, C.C., Control of BTEX migration by intrinsic bioremediation at a gasoline spill site (2000) Water Res., 34 (13), pp. 3413-3423
Khan, R., Israili, S.H., Ahmad, H., Mohan, A., Heavy metals pollution assessment in surface water bodies and its suitability for irrigation around the Neyveli lignite mines and associated industrial complex, Tamil Nadu, India (2005) Mine Water Environ., 24 (3), pp. 155-161
Lee, J.-Y., Cheon, J.-Y., Lee, K.-K., Lee, S.-Y., Lee, M.-H., Factors affecting the distribution of hydrocarbon contaminants and hydrogeochemical parameters in a shallow sand aquifer (2001) J. Contam. Hydrol., 50, pp. 139-158
Lee, S.-W., Lee, B.-t., Kim, J.-y., Kim, K.-w., Lee, J.-s., Human risk assessment for heavy metals and as contamination in the abandoned metal mine areas, Korea (2006) Environ. Monit. Assess., 119, pp. 233-244
Lewandowski, G., Mortimer, G., Estimation of anaerobic biodegradation rate constants at MGP sites (2004) Ground Water, 42 (3), pp. 433-437
Li, L., Barry, D.A., Culligan-Hensley, P.J., Bajracharya, K., Mass transfer in soils with local stratification of hydraulic conductivity (1994) Water Resour. Res., 30 (11), pp. 2891-2900
Mancini, S.A., Ulrich, A.C., Lacrampe-Couloume, G., Sleep, B., Edwards, E.A., Lollar, B.S., Carbon and hydrogen isotopic fractionation during anaerobic biodegradation of benzene (2003) Appl. Environ. Microbiol., 69, pp. 191-198
Morasch, B., Höhener, P., Hunkeler, D., Evidence for in situ degradation of mono-and polyaromatic hydrocarbons in alluvial sediments based on microcosm experiments with 13C-labeled contaminants (2007) Environ. Pollut., 148 (3), pp. 739-748
Pinault, J.-L., 2001. Manuel utilisateur de TEMPO. Logiciel de traitement et de modélisation des séries temporelles en hydrogéologie et en hydrogéochimie. RP-51459-FR. BRGM, Orléans, France, 233 pp
Platen, H., Schink, B., Methanogenic degradation of acetone by an enrichment culture (1987) Arch. Microbiol., 149 (2), pp. 136-141
Rentier, C., (2002) Méthode stochastique de délimitation des zones de protection autour des captages, , d'eau. Ph.D Thesis. Faculté des Science Appliquées. Department GEOMAC, Université de Liège, Liège, Belgium, 212 pp
Sophocleous, M.A., Stream-floodwave propagation through the Great Bend alluvial aquifer, Kansas: field measurements and numerical simulations (1991) J. Hydrol., 124, pp. 207-228
Stucki, J.W., Anderson, W.L., The quantitative assay of minerals for Fe2+ and Fe3+ using 1, 10-Phenanthroline. 1. Sources of variability (1981) Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J., 45 (3), pp. 633-637
van den Brink, C., Zaadnoordijk, W.J., Nonequilibrium transport and sorption of organic chemicals during aquifer remediation (1997) Hydrol. Sci., 42, pp. 245-264
Vanbroekhoven, K., Van Roy, S., Gielen, C., Maesen, M., Ryngaert, A., Diels, L., Seuntjens, P., Microbial processes as key drivers for metal (im) mobilization along a redox gradient in the saturated zone (2007) Environ. Pollut., 148, pp. 759-769
Wiedemeier, T.H., Rifai, H.S., Newell, C.J., Wilson, J.T., (1999) Natural Attenuation of Fuels and Chlorinated Solvents in the Subsurface, , Wiley, NewYork 617 pp
Williams, M.D., Oostrom, M., Oxygenation of anoxic water in a fluctuating water table system: an experimental and numerical study (2000) J. Hydrol., 230, pp. 70-85
Wroblicky, G.J., Campana, M.E., Valett, H.M., Dahm, C.N., Seasonal variation in surface-subsurface water exchange and lateral hyporheic area of two stream-aquifer systems (1998) Water Resour. Res., 34 (3), pp. 317-328
Zheng, C., Wang, P.P., MT3DMS: A modular three-dimensional multispecies transport model for simulation of advection, dispersion, and chemical reactions of contaminants in groundwater systems
documentation and user's guide (1999) Contract Report, , SERDP-99-1. US Army Engineer Research and Development Center, Vicksburg, MA, USA, 202 pp
