Masters Theses

Abstract

"Green and sustainable remediation can be further environmentally friendly by using renewable energy systems in place of utility-provided power. This project includes the installation of a single-axis tracking photovoltaic (PV) array at a former dry cleaning site that is undergoing remediation under the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MODNR) Dry cleaning Environmental Response Trust (DERT) Fund program. The PV array provided power to a positive displacement piston pump that extracted ground water from a 15 m deep monitoring well. The tetrachloroethene (PCE)-contaminated ground water was treated using granular activated carbon (GAC) units prior to discharge to the local publicly owned treatment works (POTW). The system included a linear current booster that eliminated the need for batteries but meant that the system would only operate at or above a solar radiation threshold. A datalogger continuously collected radiation, flowrate, and electrical data, and water quality samples were regularly collected to quantify the mass of PCE and PCE-associated products that were removed from the aquifer. There were several challenges encountered during the project, the greatest of which was the low aquifer yield and competing remediation activities. Still, a stochastic analysis was performed to estimate the average daily flowrate for any given month. A long-form model analyzed the flowrate as a function of the power consumed by the pump, with consideration given to the renewable, electrical, and mechanical energy transformations. A short-form model was also analyzed where daily flowrates were solely a function of daily observed radiation. Radiation data was obtained from a publically-available resource and compared to the actual observed radiation. The project provides means for predicting PV-powered pumping performance at other sites"--Abstract, page iv.

Advisor(s)

Elmore, A. Curt

Committee Member(s)

Cawlfield, Jeffrey D.
Crow, Mariesa

Department(s)

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering

Degree Name

M.S. in Geological Engineering

Sponsor(s)

Missouri University of Science and Technology. Energy Research Development Center
Missouri. Department of Natural Resources
Triangle Environmental Science and Engineering Inc.

Comments

Accompanying CD-ROM, available at Missouri S&T Library, contains the Monte Carlo simulations of all four models. Each simulation was developed using Oracle Crystal Ball. All documents have been prepared as Microsoft Excel document files (Windows 2007)--Introduction, page 63.

Publisher

Missouri University of Science and Technology

Publication Date

Fall 2011

Pagination

xi, 65 pages, 210 pages

Note about bibliography

Includes bibliographical references (pages 111-113).

Rights

© 2011 Erica Renée Collins, All rights reserved.

Document Type

Thesis - Open Access

File Type

text

Language

English

Subject Headings

Groundwater -- Purification -- Equipment and supplies -- Design and constructionPumping machinery -- Design and constructionRegression analysisRenewable energy sourcesSolar radiation

Thesis Number

T 9921

Print OCLC #

794671990

Electronic OCLC #

773366483

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