Field 9409171 This is an award to support research on surfactant transport in aquifers. The investigator plans initially to study the biodegradation of linear alkylbenzenesulfonate surfactants in an oxygenated zone of a wastewater-contaminated groundwater aquifer and in an oxygenated zone of uncontaminated groundwater at a field location operated by the U.S. Geological Survey's Otis Air Force Base test site on Cape Cod in Massachusetts. A subsequent phase will involve the continuous injection of a surfactant into the oxygen-depleted zone of contaminated groundwater to determine the lag time required to initiate degradation of the surfactant. Results of this project are expected to include an improved understanding of the processes that affect surfactant fate and transport in groundwater. This in turn is expected to influence the engineering design of systems based on use of surfactants to remove contaminants from contaminated aquifers. ***
