Principles and applications of thermal processes to the remediation of contaminated sites

Abstract

The Thermal Remediation technique has been widely applied all over the world for the remediation of contaminated sites. In situ or ex situ thermal treatment is based on the elevation of the soil and groundwater temperature, aiming to degrade or transfer the contaminants to the vapor phase, allowing their extraction. There are many ways to apply heat to the subsurface and the main techniques used nowadays are thermal conduction heating, electrical resistance heating and steam injection. Thermal remediation can be applied to sites with high contaminant concentrations or even to non-aqueous phase liquids (NAPL), as well as to a variety of lithotypes. Despite its remediation potential, thermal treatment of contaminated sites is still little studied or applied in Brazil. Therefore, this research presents an analysis of the techniques associated with thermal remediation, their applications, advantages and disadvantages, and an overview of their application nationwide.