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Groundwater Treatment: Removing fuel and fuel oils

Hydrocarbons (better known as fuel or fuel oils to most people) can be relatively simple to remove from groundwater.  A challenge often faced when remediating petrol filling stations.…

Groundwater Treatment: Removing fuel and fuel oils

Hydrocarbons (better known as fuel or fuel oils to most people) can be relatively simple to remove from groundwater.  A challenge often faced when remediating petrol filling stations.

A silver lining for fuel oil remediation in the ground is that fuel floats on water which can mean that the majority of contamination is confined above the water table.   Be aware that this doesn’t apply to biofuel!  Some fuel will dissolve into the groundwater over time which can mean that groundwater treatment is required in addition to removal of the fuel floating on the surface of the groundwater.

Treatment of groundwater contaminated with fuels can be approached in the following ways-

1) Pump & Treat – pump groundwater up to the surface, and run through an appropriate treatment system.

2) Free phase removal – skim the fuel off the surface of the groundwater, this can either involve an active pumping system, or passive skimmers.  The later often provides a low budget option for small areas of contamination or low volumes of free product.

3) In-situ treatment – addition of chemical oxidants, sparging the water with air, to name a couple.

If you want to know more then we have a list of technologies on our web-site, see Soilutions’ services here.

We’re always here to talk to if you’re looking for more site specific advice on 0800 0209 307.

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