Chapter 3
In Situ Thermal Treatments
and Enhancements: Theory and Case Study
Stéfan Colombano, Hossein Davarzani, Eric D. van Hullebusch,
Ioannis Ignatiadis, Huguen Huguenot, Clément Zornig,
and Dominique Guyonnet
Abstract Environmental remediation deals with the removal of pollutants from
media such as soils, groundwater, sediments, and surface water for the sake of
human health and the environment. Organic contaminants constitute the main source
of pollution. If the concentration of these contaminants is too high or their mobilities
are very poor, conventional treatment techniques, namely physical, biological, and
chemical treatments are not very efficient from the technological or economical
standpoint. In these cases, thermal treatments can be applied. Thermal enhancements
have been used for the remediation of contaminated soils and groundwater for more
than 20 years. Depending on the heating temperatures, in situ thermal treatment may
be used in combination with physical, chemical, and biological treatment processes.
Increasing the temperature contributes to (1) increasing the organic contaminant
vapor pressure, the aqueous solubility, the Henry’s Law constant, the rate of (bio)
chemical degradation and (2) decreasing the organic carbon partitioning, liquid
density, liquid viscosity, and interfacial tension. By changing these physicochemical
properties, the remediation rates and yields increase, and eventually the pollution
remediation time, and sometimes treatment costs are reduced. However,
implementing these thermal treatment technologies is not applicable in all cases: it
involves high-energy consumption by reaching high temperatures, and maybe further complicated by heat loss (depending on environmental conditions). In this
chapter, conventional technologies for in situ thermal enhancements are discussed
S. Colombano (*) · H. Davarzani · I. Ignatiadis · C. Zornig · D. Guyonnet
BRGM (French Geological Survey), Orléans, France
e-mail: s.colombano@brgm.fr; h.davarzani@brgm.fr; i.ignatiadis@brgm.fr; c.zornig@brgm.fr;
d.guyonnet@brgm.fr
E. D. van Hullebusch
Institut de physique du globe de Paris, Université de Paris, Paris, France
e-mail: vanhullebusch@ipgp.fr
H. Huguenot
Laboratoire Géomatériaux et Environnement, Université Gustave Eiffel, Champs-sur-Marne,
France
e-mail: David.Huguenot@u-pem.fr
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
E. D. van Hullebusch et al. (eds.), Environmental Soil Remediation
and Rehabilitation, Applied Environmental Science and Engineering for a
Sustainable Future, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-40348-5_3
149
In Situ Thermal Treatments
and Enhancements: Theory and Case Study
Stéfan Colombano, Hossein Davarzani, Eric D. van Hullebusch,
Ioannis Ignatiadis, Huguen Huguenot, Clément Zornig,
and Dominique Guyonnet
Abstract Environmental remediation deals with the removal of pollutants from
media such as soils, groundwater, sediments, and surface water for the sake of
human health and the environment. Organic contaminants constitute the main source
of pollution. If the concentration of these contaminants is too high or their mobilities
are very poor, conventional treatment techniques, namely physical, biological, and
chemical treatments are not very efficient from the technological or economical
standpoint. In these cases, thermal treatments can be applied. Thermal enhancements
have been used for the remediation of contaminated soils and groundwater for more
than 20 years. Depending on the heating temperatures, in situ thermal treatment may
be used in combination with physical, chemical, and biological treatment processes.
Increasing the temperature contributes to (1) increasing the organic contaminant
vapor pressure, the aqueous solubility, the Henry’s Law constant, the rate of (bio)
chemical degradation and (2) decreasing the organic carbon partitioning, liquid
density, liquid viscosity, and interfacial tension. By changing these physicochemical
properties, the remediation rates and yields increase, and eventually the pollution
remediation time, and sometimes treatment costs are reduced. However,
implementing these thermal treatment technologies is not applicable in all cases: it
involves high-energy consumption by reaching high temperatures, and maybe further complicated by heat loss (depending on environmental conditions). In this
chapter, conventional technologies for in situ thermal enhancements are discussed
S. Colombano (*) · H. Davarzani · I. Ignatiadis · C. Zornig · D. Guyonnet
BRGM (French Geological Survey), Orléans, France
e-mail: s.colombano@brgm.fr; h.davarzani@brgm.fr; i.ignatiadis@brgm.fr; c.zornig@brgm.fr;
d.guyonnet@brgm.fr
E. D. van Hullebusch
Institut de physique du globe de Paris, Université de Paris, Paris, France
e-mail: vanhullebusch@ipgp.fr
H. Huguenot
Laboratoire Géomatériaux et Environnement, Université Gustave Eiffel, Champs-sur-Marne,
France
e-mail: David.Huguenot@u-pem.fr
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
E. D. van Hullebusch et al. (eds.), Environmental Soil Remediation
and Rehabilitation, Applied Environmental Science and Engineering for a
Sustainable Future, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-40348-5_3
149