 Zero
valent iron placed in the groundwater has been known to abiotic
degrade a wide range of chlorinated compounds into non-toxic end products.
Also, numerous heavy metals are immobilized and removed from the
groundwater by the iron.
The first iron reactive treatment wall was constructed in 1991 as
a field trial, followed by two in early '95, and during the past
seven years a number of full scale and pilot systems have been installed
with over fifty (50) full-scale iron PRBs having been installed
to date.
The rapid increase in the number of PRBs installed reflects the
increasing maturity and acceptance of the zero valent iron technology
and benefits of passive in situ remediation. Iron PRB technology
is now considered a well established and proven long term solution to
groundwater remediation and is acknowledged by many experts and
regulatory agencies to be a preferred remedy with a life of greater
than thirty years. The advantages and applicability of iron PRB technology
are summarized below: |
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Proven, well-established technology for
long-term groundwater remediation. |
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Accepted by the Regulatory Agencies as
a Preferred Remedy and has replaced Pump & Treat in a large
number of Records of Decision (RODs). |
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Environmentally benign - no pumping or
energy needs - no toxic waste or emissions generated. |
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Destroys a wide variety of volatile organic
compounds (VOCs) to non-toxic end products, with chemistry and kinetics
well understood. |
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Immobilizes or precipitates numerous
metals with a large effective capacity. |
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Demonstrated long term performance, with
expected life of > 30 years, with no signs of clogging, no loss
of permeability, or major changes in iron reactivity over time. |
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Significant cost advantage amounting
to less than life cycle cost of pump and treat. |
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