CSIA: A tool to assess contaminated sites and evaluate remediation actions.

Course Objective:

Provide a fundamental understanding of CSIA principles and methodologies.

Demonstrate the use of CSIA in identifying contamination sources within diverse environmental contexts. Showcase how CSIA aids in characterizing contaminant pathways and behaviors as well as characterizing and assessing the fate of different contaminants released in the environment. Explore the role of CSIA in devising targeted and efficient remediation strategies. This course is designed for environmental scientists, engineers, regulators, and stakeholders involved in investigating and remediating contaminated sites. It caters to individuals seeking advanced tools to enhance their understanding and approach to site investigation and remediation.

Course Overview:

Course Overview: Isotopes, among them compound-specific isotope analysis (CSIA), stand as a potent tool for delineating intermingled contaminant plumes, facilitating enhanced comprehension, and quantifying the transformation processes, both biological and abiotic, of various contaminants such as chlorinated solvents and hydrocarbons. This course will delve into the foundational theory of isotopes, followed by an extensive exploration of field case studies. A particular emphasis will be placed on the latest advancements in integrating CSIA with traditional isotope analyses and established site characterization methods.

This concise course is tailored to showcase the most recent strides in CSIA and the broad applications of stable isotopes, specifically in investigating natural attenuation and actively remediating various contaminants. CSIA has proven its efficacy in pinpointing contamination sources, tracking contaminant pathways in groundwater, and evaluating the efficacy of diverse remediation methods encompassing biological, chemical (e.g., in situ chemical oxidation [ISCO], permeable reactive barriers [PRB]), and physical techniques (e.g., thermal treatment, pump and treat).

In the recent decade, CSIA has been extensively employed in numerous contaminated sites, yielding highly successful outcomes by uncovering information not revealed through conventional concentration analysis. While prior studies heavily relied on 13C-CSIA, recent investigations have increasingly incorporated additional isotopes such as 37Cl-CSIA and 2H-CSIA. This surge in interest toward two-dimensional (13C and 37Cl) or, in some instances, three-dimensional (13C, 37Cl, and 2H) isotope approaches is driven by advancements in analytical methods, laboratory evidence, and field applications. These have demonstrated the added value of employing multiple CSIA to differentiate between various sources of contamination and better understand contaminant fate within the subsurface.

Moreover, the course will shed light on the utilization of CSIA in addressing vapor intrusion

concerns.

Draft Agenda:

Draft Agenda (4 Hours):

1. Fundamentals of Compound-Specific Isotope Analysis (30 minutes)

2. Collection, Preservation and Storage of Samples – laboratory issues and quality control (30

minutes)

3. Interpretation of isotope data from field studies; enrichment factors and other important

data from the literature (30 minutes)

4. CSIA Applications in Identifying Contaminant Sources: Case Studies (45 minutes)

5. Characterization of Contaminants and Pathways using Isotopic Analysis (30 minutes)

6. CSIA for natural attenuation evaluation: case studies (45 minutes)

7. The use of CSIA to assess the performance of on-going remediation technologies: case

studies (30 minutes)

Laptops are not required for this course.

Course Length: 4 Hours