Nucleation and Precipitation Processes in the Vadose Zone During Contaminant Transport

Investigators: Burcu Uyusur, UIC Civil and Materials Engineering Department;Christophe Darnault, UIC Civil and Materials Engineering Department;Kathryn L. Nagy, UIC Earth and Environmental Science DepartmentNeil C. Sturchio, UIC Earth and Environmental Science Department;Soufiane Mekki, UIC Earth and Environmental Science Department

Primary Grant Support: U.S. Department of Energy

SEM and EDS of metaschoepite(UO3·n(H2O)(n<2) (Buck et al., 2004)

Technical ApproachThree dimensional unsaturated column experiments Two dimensional light transmission visualization experiments Autoradiography TechniqueSurface Analysis techniques (BET Gas Adsorption; AFM-Atomic Force Microscopy; XRD-X Ray Diffraction)Insight Analysis Techniques (TRLFS-Time Resolved Laser Fluorescence Spectroscopy; EXAFS- Extended X-Ray Absorption Fine Structure)Incorporation of the data to a reactive transport code

Problem Statement and Motivation•Leakage has been determined in the vadose zone sediments of Hanford Site, U.S. Department of Energy Complex in Washington since 1950s, including radioactive elements such as uranium.•Preferential flow, a common phenomena in unsaturated soil, is the movement of water and solutes faster than the average pore water velocity due to fingering.

Visualization and mapping of simulated Hanford leakage water

•Contaminant mobility is affected by sorption, colloid formation, nucleation and precipitation of secondary solids.

Characterize and quantify the formation of secondary precipitates in the presence of uranium with quartz and feldspar minerals.

Investigation of possible colloid formation

Achievements and Future Goals

Understanding the fate and transport of uranium in simulated Hanford vadose zone

Refining the conditions needed for incorporation of radionuclides into secondary solids.

Predicting the effect of precipitates on vadose zone flow.

Modeling with colloids, nucleation, precipitation, sorption incorporated

Extracting general governing ideas applicable to other radioactive contaminated sites

Fate and Transport of Fullerenes and Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes (SWNT)Fate and Transport of Fullerenes and Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes (SWNT) in Unsaturated and Saturated Porous Media in Unsaturated and Saturated Porous Media

Investigators: Itzel G Godinez, UIC, Department of Civil and Materials Engineering; Investigators: Itzel G Godinez, UIC, Department of Civil and Materials Engineering; Christophe Darnault, UIC, Department of Civil and Materials Engineering Christophe Darnault, UIC, Department of Civil and Materials Engineering

Primary Grant Support: National Science Foundation Bridge to the Doctorate Fellowship at the University of Illinois at ChicagoPrimary Grant Support: National Science Foundation Bridge to the Doctorate Fellowship at the University of Illinois at Chicago

Technical ApproachTechnical Approach• Implementation of segmented soil columns to assess the transport

of fullerenes and SWNTs in unsaturated conditions• Concentration of nanomaterials in column’s effluent will be

analyzed by UV-vis spectrophotometer• Three-dimensional reconstruction of the columns will be

accomplished through the Advanced Photon Source Hard-Ray Microbe from Argonne National Laboratory

• Pore-scale visualization technique will consist of an infiltration chamber, mounting assembly, light source, electronic equipment (e.g. camera, lens and computer system), and imaging software

Problem Statement and MotivationProblem Statement and Motivation• Generation of scientific data to explain the fate and transport of

nanomaterials in subsurface environment• Development of non-intrusive, high-spatial and temporal

techniques to describe transport and measure concentrations of fullerenes and SWNTs in porous media

• Assessment of the extend in which fullerenes and SWNTs are transported in the vadose zone through preferential flow

• Establishment of the impact of wetting and drying cycles on the transport of nanomaterials by characterizing the role of gas-liquid interface regions and reconstructing the soil column’s three-dimensional structure

• Development of a pore-scale visualization method by adapting existing models and techniques to investigate the mechanisms controlling nanomaterials retention and immobilization in unsaturated porous media (e.g. air-water and air-water-soil interfaces)

Expected Key Achievements and GoalsExpected Key Achievements and Goals• Development of techniques to visualize and describe the fate and

transport of fullerenes and SWNTs in the vadose zone by preferential flow according to the following characteristics:

Non-intrusive, high-spatial and temporal methods Use of preferential flow (e.g. fingering and gravitational

flow) Reconstruction of 3-D columns Development of a real-time pore-scale visualization

method Acquiring data (e.g. nanomaterial concentration, soil

moisture, velocity, distribution of nanoparticles, etc.) to explain the behavior of nanomaterials in porous media under different conditions

Post Seismic Structural Health Monitoring of Bridges Investigators: A. Bassam, A. Iranmanesh and F. Ansari, Civil and Materials Engineering

Primary Grant Support: National Science Foundation

Problem Statement and Motivation

Technical Approach Key Achievements and Future Goals• Network of serially multiplexed

fiber optic sensors• Real-time Damage detection

• Development of novel fiber optic seismic sensors•Real-time monitoring of progressive damage•Robust Damage Detection Methodologies0 5 10 15 20 25 30

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Fiber Optic Weigh-in-Motion (WIM) sensor for BridgesLuisa Degiovanni and Farhad Ansari, Civil and Materials Engineering, University of Illinois at

Chicago

Problem Statement and Motivation

Technical Approach Key Achievements and Future Goals

• The measure of static axle load of heavy vehicles as they drive at highway speed is an effective tool for condition assessment of in-service structures.

• Results can be used for improvement of pavement managing systems, road transport analysis, detection of overloaded vehicles, enforcement of weight limits.

• INVERSE PROBLEM: use the response of a highway bridge to weigh trucks.

• Application of fiber optic sensor technology (accuracy, low cost, light weight, Immune to interference, non-intrusive).

• Placement of sensors under the bridge deck (no need for new construction or weigh station).

• Use of influence lines as a tool for the detection of the truck weight through the bridge deck responses to loading.

• development of sensors and data processing system for the detection of speed and static axle loads of heavy vehicles.

• evaluations of errors due to the dynamics of the problem, due to vehicles speed, change in tires pressure, spring types, pavement roughness.

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in • WIM systems may provide reliable information about the actual dynamic load and calculate the fatigue cycles experienced by the structures.

• study of WIM systems (sensors number and placement to improve the accuracy).

Structural Health Monitoring of Turin’s Olympic Village Cable-Stayed Bridge

Investigators: Iman Talebinejad, Chad Fischer, Luca Giacosa, and Farhad AnsariCivil & Materials Engineering - Sponsor: City of Turin

Problem Statement and Motivation

Technical Approach Key Achievements and Future Goals

• Cable-stayed bridges can have complex geometry and non-standard structural members making them difficult to analyze with conventional methods.

• Previous problems with vibrations in similar pedestrian bridges have been experienced.

• The long term performance of such bridges has not been fully documented.

• Employed fiber optic sensors to monitor the performance of the bridge cables.

• Monitor the cables during load tests and under ambient vibration conditions.

• Use finite element modeling to correlate sensor data and understand the modal properties and long term performance of the bridge.

• Establishment of structural performance of asymmetric cable-stayed bridges.

• Developed methods to estimate dynamic characteristics of the bridge by only monitoring cable forces in the bridge.

• Real-time monitoring to assess the long term bridge performance by observing changes in sensor response.