Abstract
For many years, in-situ thermal vitrification has been recognized as one method to remediate contaminated soils and help stabilize land fills. However, the complexity of the process and the uncertainty of the results have limited the use of this remediation technique.A plasma is a gas that has been ionized by the electric arc of a plasma torch and can therefore respond to electrical and magnetic fields. Plasma arc technology can create plasma using almost any type of gas (oxygen, nitrogen, carbon monoxide, air, etc.) and in a wide range of pressures (vacuum to 20 atmospheres).The process of plasma remediation of in-situ materials could provide a rapid, highly efficient, cost-effective, reliable and simple controllable technique to selectively melt, vitrify and remediate essentially any contaminated or buried volume of soils, materials or objects at any depth underground.
Fact Sheet ID Number
OT10009
Sub-Area
Soil Remediation
Keywords
in-situ, vitrification, plasma, touch technology, construction, remediation
DOI
10.5703/1288284315905
Date of this Version
1-1-2007
Recommended Citation
ECT Team, Purdue, "Plasma Arc Torch Technology" (2007). ECT Fact Sheets. Paper 195.
http://dx.doi.org/10.5703/1288284315905