A permeable reactive barrier (PRB) media sequence for the remediation of heavy metal and hydrocarbon contaminated water: A field assessment at Casey Station, Antarctica

Abstract

A field trial was conducted at Casey Station, Antarctica to assess the suitability of a permeable reactive barrier (PRB) media sequence for the remediation of sites containing both hydrocarbon and heavy metal contamination. An existing PRB was modified to assess a sequence consisting of three sections: (i) Nutrient release/hydrocarbon sorption using ZeoPro™ and granular activated carbon; (ii) Phosphorus and heavy metal capture by granular iron and sand; (iii) Nutrient and excess iron capture by zeolite.The media sequence achieved a greater phosphorus removal capacity than previous Antarctic PRB configurations installed on site. Phosphorus concentrations were reduced during flow through the i..