Resolving the Impact of Biological Processes on DNAPL Transport in Unsaturated Porous Media Through Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Relaxation Time Measurements

This research leads to a better understanding of how physical and biological properties of porous media influence water and dense non-aqueous phase liquid (DNAPL) distributions under saturated and unsaturated conditions. Knowing how environmental properties affect DNAPL solvent flow in the subsurface is essential for developing models of flow and transport needed for designing remediation and long-term stewardship strategies. We investigate the capability and limitations of low-field nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) relaxation decay-rate measurements for determining environmental properties affecting DNAPL solvent flow in the subsurface. For in-situ subsurface environmental applications, low-field proton NMR measurements are preferred to conventional high-field techniques commonly used to obtain chemical shift data, because low field measurements are much less degraded by magnetic susceptibility variations between rock grains and pore fluids that significantly interfere with high-field NMR measurements. The research scope includes discriminating DNAPLs in water-wet or solvent-wet environments and the impact of biological processes on their transport mechanisms in porous media. Knowledge of the in situ flow properties and pore distributions of organic contaminants are critical to understanding where and when these fluids will enter subsurface aquifers. Experiments determined that commonly found subsurface DNAPLs containing hydrogen, such as trichloroethylene and dichloroethylene, are detectable and distinguished from water in soils. Related experiments concern the effects of bacterial accumulation in saturated and unsaturated porous media on water and DNAPL pore-size distributions. These include synthetic bio-film matrix as a surrogate bio-film and sand, biological agents to grow biofilms, and multiple pore sizes to determine if bio-films prefer certain pore-size ranges. NMR microscopy focused on imaging a single biofilm in a 1 mm capillary reactor. This system serves as a model for a single large anisotropic pore of a porous media and allows for determination of T2, spin-spin magnetic relaxation behavior within the biofilm. Measurement and analysis protocols along with packing and saturating protocols are evaluated. The anticipated outcome of this research will establish the utility of proton NMR laboratory and field measurements for elucidating flow properties in different porous media, detecting microbiological influence on DNAPLs, and DNAPL pore-fluid partitions under saturated and unsaturated conditions.