214 Elutriation of benzene-contaminated soil by using iquefied DME at normal temperature.
Details
Ground benzene-pollution is a significant environmental concern. However, large amounts of energy are required for the cleanup of the ground since the water contained in the soil hinder the extraction processes that use hydrophobic organic solvents. The proposed technology is a new concept that aims at energy-efficient cleanup for benzene-polluted soil by the use of liquefied DME (dimethyl ether) gas, which is eco-friendly, as an extractant. The saturated pressure of DME is moderate-0.51 MPa at 20℃. Liquefied DME resolves high volume organic contaminants and water. We successfully removed almost perfectly benzene from wet soil by using liquefied DME. Moreover, we succeeded cleanup by using DME deteriorated by much benzene and water. This implies that DME saturated by water achieve full effect to extract benzene from wet soil.
