In-Situ Mineralization of Actinides for Groundwater Cleanup: Laboratory Demonstration with Soil from the Fernald Environmental Management Project

Abstract

Accidental releases, disposal of contaminated materials in landfills and soil pits, and leaking storage tanks have contaminated soils and waters at many DOE sites with a variety of radioactive and chemically hazardous substances¹. Various technological solutions have been proposed for remediation of sites contaminated with transuranic elements. Protocols have been developed for washing of soils with various solvent/chelating agent mixtures. Radionuclides can be removed from groundwaters by pumping the waters to the surface, treating them (e. g., by cation exchange or membrane separations) and returning the cleaned water to the subsurface, so-called “pump and treat” methods. Installation of reactive barriers into the subsurface, injection of impermeable barriers, and even “glassification”, melting the soils to convert them to glass, have been suggested as methods for minimizing the potential for migration of the contaminants to the wider environment. For many chemical contaminants, bioremediation is an attractive option.