Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1976. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Bibliography: leaves 98-103.

An investigation of the trend over time of the concentration of selected soil leachate constituents contained in domestic effluent applied to a ferro-humic podzol forest soil was undertaken. From July 15, 1976 to November 12, 1976, 2 cm of domestic effluent, selectively supplemented with commercial fertilizer, was sprayed twice weekly to a 900 m² plot situated on a mountain slope. Ten porous plate tension lysimeters installed at various depths and locations in the forest soil continuously extracted the resulting soil leachate. The soil leachate samples collected twice per week over the duration of the study, as well as the applied effluent samples, were analysed for chloride, nitrate and total Kjeldahl nitrogen and total and orthophosphorus. Based on. the concentrations of nitrate nitrogen, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, and total phosphate in the applied effluent as well as the average volume of effluent applied over the total irrigation plot, k8A kg/ha (^3.2 lb/acre) nitrate nitrogen, 93-7 kg/ha (83-6 lb/acre) total Kjeldahl nitrogen, and ^3.5 kg/ha (38.6 lb/acre) of total phosphate were applied to the plot during the project period. The chloride ion gradually increased in concentration over the duration of the study until it eventually equalled the value of the chloride in the domestic effluent. This gradual increase was a possible result of the retention of the initial amounts of applied chloride on the anion exchange sites in the soil, which when satisfied, allowed subsequent amounts of applied chloride to move through the soil with the applied effluent. No ortho or total phosphorus was detected in the soil leachate samples collected over the duration of the study. While recognizing the possibility of microbiological immobilization of a portion of the applied phosphorus, the most likely retention mechanism was the adsorption of the phosphorus by the amorphous iron and aluminum compounds in the soil. Nitrate and total Kjeldahl nitrogen were detected in low concentrations in the soil leachate samples only in the time interval following the application of domestic effluent containing greatly increased effluent concentrations of nitrate and total Kjeldahl nitrogen. The increased concentrations resulted from the addition of commercial fertilizers to the treatment lagoon. Such trends suggest microbiological immobilization was playing a role in the removal of the nitrogen compounds. The retention of ammonia, the major component of total Kjeldahl nitrogen, on the cation exchange sites and the retention of nitrate nitrogen on the anion exchange sites would also be occurring. In order to investigate the magnitude of the reaction between phosphorus and the iron and aluminum compounds in the podzol soil, batch scale laboratory tests were undertaken. The time-phosphorus adsorption results indicate that the phosphorus reacts very quickly with the amorphous iron and aluminum compounds in the soil on the plot. The Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms were calculated as was the phosphorus adsorption maximum based on the Langmuir isotherm. The calculated phosphorus adsorption would probably give a conservative estimate of the phosphorus removal potential since the isotherm is based only on the initial and not the long term phosphorus adsorption reactions. Despite the fact that the soil water content was continually above the soil water content at the field capacity, no phosphorus and very little nitrogen was detected in the soil leachate samples. Such results suggest that a phosphorus or nitrogen balance may be a useful irrigation operating criterion rather than the commonly accepted water balance criterion. In such a situation the phosphorus or nitrogen requirements over the growing season of the crop would be evaluated and met by the application of domestic effluent. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Civil Engineering, Department of / Graduate

One of the problems associated with the disposal of solid wastes in landfills, particularly in high precipitation areas, is the pollution caused by the production of the often highly contaminated leachate. This study was initiated to investigate the treatability of a low-strength municipal landfill leachate using aerobic digestion followed by activated carbon polishing, so that the most cost effective treatment system could be determined. Sludge desorption and leachate toxicity assessment were also included in the study. The aerated lagoon process alone was very effective in treating the leachate to a quality that is nearly acceptable for discharge to a receiving water. Only SO₄ and Fe in the settled effluent significantly exceeded the local requlatory standards for specific discharges. Carbon adsorption greatly improved the settled effluent quality in terms of color, Fe and COD. However, the addition of this polishing process for combined treatment may not be cost effective. For an influent COD of 1,600 mg/1 and with MLVSS concentrations ranging between 360 and 560 mg/1, the settled effluent COD removal increased from 82.6% to as high as 90.1% when 9C was increased from 2 to 10 days. For the corresponding influent BOD5 of about 1,000 mg/1 and with θ[sub c] greater than 3 days, the BOD5 removal efficiencies averaged 99.1% and the settled effluent BOD5's were no greater than 10 mg/1. This indicates that the raw leachate can be almost completely biodegraded by aerobic digestion. The metal removal efficiency in aerobic treatment was greater than 95% for Fe and Mn, better than 90% for Zn and Pb, and about 80% for Al. Metals expected to be mainly or significantly removed by chemical precipitation due to pH change during treatment included Ca, Fe, Mn, Zn and Pb. Analysis of the kinetic parameters associated with the biological treatment indicated that the concentrations of pollutants, such as heavy metals, in the leachate were not great enough to cause significant inhibition of biological growth. It also showed that this leachate could very likely be added to a domestic sewage, in a high percentage, for aerobic treatment without producing adverse effects. From a treatment efficiency point of view, the optimum solids detention time was found to be 7 to 10 days for leachate BOD₅ ranging from 1,000 to 3,000 mg/1. However, since the predicted θ[sub c] for failure was 0.42 day at 22°C for a 1,000 mg/1 BOD₅ leachate, a θ[sub c] of 2 to 4 days seems possible in the field. On the other hand, the effects of winter temperature on BOD₅ removal and sludge settleability, as well as many other unknown factors on the overall biological treatment efficiency must be considered. It was, therefore, felt that a solids detention time of 5 days or more would be the more realistic approach for a full-scale treatment system, despite the fact that an economic analysis favored a shorter θ[sub c]. / Applied Science, Faculty of / Civil Engineering, Department of / Unknown

A test method and the associated equipment have been developed to investigate the effect of suspended solids on the flow of fluid into a deep injection well system. Preliminary testing indicates that the equipment and test method can be used to determine the permeability of rock samples with a high degree of accuracy. Additionally this equipment can be used in a testing program which will eventually lead to the development of guidelines for the degree of pre-injection treatment required for suspended solids so that the operational life of the well is not impaired.

No description available.

Boreholes in the vicinity of a nuclear waste repository must be reliably sealed to prevent rapid migration of radionuclide contaminated water from the vicinity of the repository to the accessible environment. Few data currently exist regarding the effectiveness of borehole sealing. The objective of this research was to assess the performance of borehole seals under laboratory conditions, particularly with regard to varying stress fields. The approach used to evaluate borehole seals was to compare flow through a sealed borehole with flow through intact rock. Granite, basalt, and tuff were tested, using either cement or bentonite as the seal material. The main conclusions reached as a result of the experiments is that currently existing materials are capable of forming high quality seals when placed under laboratory conditions. Variation of triaxial stress state about a borehole does not significantly affect seal performance if the rock is stiffer than the seal material. Temperature/moisture variations (drying) degraded the quality of cement seals significantly. Performance partially recovered upon resaturation. A skillfully sealed borehole may reasonably be expected to be as impermeable as a fractured rock mass (subject to site-specific verification). The influence of relative seal-rock permeabilities provides insight into important seal parameters. A plug one order of magnitude greater in permeability than the rock through which it passes resulted in an increase in flow through the borehole and surrounding rock of only 1 1/2 times as compared to the undisturbed rock. Since a sealed borehole and its surrounding rock are only a small part of the total rock mass, the effect is even less pronounced. One of the simplest ways to decrease flow through a seal-rock system is to increase the length of the seal. Significant remaining questions include field emplacement techniques; field vertification of plug quality; plug performance over long time periods, particularly with respect to temperature/moisture variations and chemical stability; and radionuclide sorption capabilities. Scale effects are also important, as shafts and drifts must be sealed as well as larger diameter boreholes.

No description available.

No description available.

No description available.

Thesis (Ph. D. - Hydrology and Water Resources)--University of Arizona, 1986. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 207-213).