Quantification of Soil Contaminant Extraction:
A Classroom Demonstration
Jackie Kane
Affiliation
Abstract
The remediation of a subsurface site that is contaminated by a toxic
liquid represents an environmental challenge that may be managed by a
practical combination of vacuum technologies and scientific principles.
I will present a classroom demonstration that models this combination in
a process called soil vapor extraction (SVE). SVE is an accepted method
for removing volatile organic compounds (VOC) from a permeable
non-saturated subsurface material. The demonstration is applicable to
seventh through twelfth grade, general through AP science classes. The
educational benefit is a clear connection in the student's mind between
an abstract physiochemical property and a real world environmental
management application. Since SVE is an application that students may
witness in their own communities, the demonstration is a segue to the
political, economic, and social aspects of this technique's application
and the science that can be directed to solve real world environmental
problems.