The Influence of Crude Oil on Mechanistic Detachment Rate Parameters

Abstract

Iraqi soil contamination greatly influenced soil detachment. Previous researchers have not been able to predict the influence of crude oil soil contamination on either the mechanistic dimensional detachment parameter b0 or the threshold parameter b1 of the mechanistic detachment model (Wilson model). The aims of this research were (1) to investigate the influence of crude oil on deriving Wilson model parameters, b0 and b1, with two setups at different scales and different soil moisture contents and (2) to predict b0 and b1 in crude oil contaminated dry soils with varying levels of contamination. The “mini” JET apparatus was implemented under laboratory conditions for soil specimens packed at both a small (standard mold) and a large (in-situ soil box) scale. The results showed an inverse correlation between b0 and water content for clean soil. No correlation between b0 and soil moisture content was observed for contaminated soils. There was a huge reduction in the b0 value as the contamination time increased compared to the clean soil. This was related to the role crude oil plays in soil stabilization. Crude oil contamination significantly increased lead contamination level while slightly increasing the pH and total organic carbon. The influence of crude oil on mechanistic soil detachment can be predicted with a priori JET experiments on soils without crude oil based on crude oil parameters.