Enhanced Soil Washing with Surfactants or Other Solubility Enhancers

5 ENHANCED SOIL WASHING WITH SURFACTANTS OR OTHER SOLUBILITY ENHANCERS 

Researchers at Roy F. Weston performed treatability studies of washing explosives-contaminated debris with water and surfactants. Due to the low water solubility of the explosives, washing with water alone did not remove the contaminants to the 30 mg/kg level. However, washing with a surfactant was able to decrease concentrations to below the 30 mg/kg level. 

Soil washing is generally accepted as preferable to more conventional methods such as incineration for wastes where soil washing will provide cost-effective cleanup. The soil washing operation will have minimal effect on the off-site population or environment. However, soil washing produces a small volume of residual requiring further treatment or disposal. 

Unexploded ordnance (UXO) is technically defined as explosive ordnance which has been primed, fused, armed, or other wise prepared for action, and which has been fired, dropped, launched, projected, or placed in such a manner as to constitute a hazard to operations, installations, personnel, or materiel, and remains unexploded either by malfunction or design, or for any other cause. 

Within the United States, DOD estimates that over 900 military sites are contaminated with UXO. DOD estimates that it has already cost 10.3 billion through fiscal year 1994 to clean up sites contaminated with hazardous materials, including UXO, and that it will cost an additional 31 billion for future actions. In European countries, millions of bombs, landmines, and other munitions from World Wars I and II still remain uncleared. 

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