Chemical Transport (chemical + transport)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Stochastic Study of Solute Transport in a Nonstationary Medium

GROUND WATER, Issue 2 2006
Bill X. Hu
A Lagrangian stochastic approach is applied to develop a method of moment for solute transport in a physically and chemically nonstationary medium. Stochastic governing equations for mean solute flux and solute covariance are analytically obtained in the first-order accuracy of log conductivity and/or chemical sorption variances and solved numerically using the finite-difference method. The developed method, the numerical method of moments (NMM), is used to predict radionuclide solute transport processes in the saturated zone below the Yucca Mountain project area. The mean, variance, and upper bound of the radionuclide mass flux through a control plane 5 km downstream of the footprint of the repository are calculated. According to their chemical sorption capacities, the various radionuclear chemicals are grouped as nonreactive, weakly sorbing, and strongly sorbing chemicals. The NMM method is used to study their transport processes and influence factors. To verify the method of moments, a Monte Carlo simulation is conducted for nonreactive chemical transport. Results indicate the results from the two methods are consistent, but the NMM method is computationally more efficient than the Monte Carlo method. This study adds to the ongoing debate in the literature on the effect of heterogeneity on solute transport prediction, especially on prediction uncertainty, by showing that the standard derivation of solute flux is larger than the mean solute flux even when the hydraulic conductivity within each geological layer is mild. This study provides a method that may become an efficient calculation tool for many environmental projects. [source]


Simultaneous analyses and applications of multiple fluorobenzoate and halide tracers in hydrologic studies

HYDROLOGICAL PROCESSES, Issue 14 2005
Qinhong Hu
Abstract An analytical method that employs ion chromatography has been developed to exploit the use of fluorobenzoic acids (FBAs) and halides more fully as hydrologic tracers. In a single run, this reliable, sensitive, and robust method can simultaneously separate and quantify halides (fluoride, chloride, bromide, and iodide) and up to seven FBAs from other common groundwater constituents (e.g. nitrate and sulphate). The usefulness of this analytical method is demonstrated in both field and laboratory tracer experiments. The field study examines the hydrologic response of fractures and the matrix to different flow rates and the contribution of matrix diffusion in chemical transport. Laboratory tracer experiments with eight geologic media from across the USA,mostly from Department of Energy facilities where groundwater contamination is prevalent and where subsurface characterization employing tracers has been ongoing or is in need,reveal several insights about tracer transport behaviour: (1) bromide and FBAs are not always transported conservatively; (2) the delayed transport of these anionic tracers is likely related to geologic media characteristics, such as organic matter, pH, iron oxide content, and clay mineralogy; (3) use of iodine as a hydrologic tracer should take into account the different sorption behaviours of iodide and iodate and the possible conversion of iodine's initial chemical form; (4) the transport behaviour of potential FBA and halide tracers under relevant geochemical conditions should be evaluated before beginning ambitious, large-scale field tracer experiments. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Adaptive moving mesh methods for simulating one-dimensional groundwater problems with sharp moving fronts

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL METHODS IN ENGINEERING, Issue 11 2002
Weizhang Huang
Abstract Accurate modelling of groundwater flow and transport with sharp moving fronts often involves high computational cost, when a fixed/uniform mesh is used. In this paper, we investigate the modelling of groundwater problems using a particular adaptive mesh method called the moving mesh partial differential equation approach. With this approach, the mesh is dynamically relocated through a partial differential equation to capture the evolving sharp fronts with a relatively small number of grid points. The mesh movement and physical system modelling are realized by solving the mesh movement and physical partial differential equations alternately. The method is applied to the modelling of a range of groundwater problems, including advection dominated chemical transport and reaction, non-linear infiltration in soil, and the coupling of density dependent flow and transport. Numerical results demonstrate that sharp moving fronts can be accurately and efficiently captured by the moving mesh approach. Also addressed are important implementation strategies, e.g. the construction of the monitor function based on the interpolation error, control of mesh concentration, and two-layer mesh movement. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Experimental and modeling analysis of diffusive release from single-shell microcapsules

AICHE JOURNAL, Issue 11 2009
Enrique Muñoz Tavera
Abstract There is much experimental and mathematical work that describes chemical transport from multilayered films of planar geometries. There is less so, however, for chemical transport from multilayered spheres, a common structure for controlled-release materials. Based on the Sturm,Liouville approach of Ramkrishna and Amundson (1974), explicit analytical solutions for the concentration profiles and release kinetics from spherical capsules are presented. Fluorescent dye-release studies using single-shelled microspheres called nanoparticle-assembled capsules were performed to validate the model for uniformly and nonuniformly sized capsules. The combined experiment-modeling approach allows optical microscopy images and release measurements to be readily analyzed for estimating diffusion coefficients in capsule core and shell walls. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2009 [source]