Treatment of nonhazardous petroleum-contaminated soils by thermal desorption technologies

Spills, leaks, and accidental discharges of petroleum products have contaminated soil at thousands of sites in the United States. One remedial action technique for treating petroleum contaminated soil is the use of thermal desorption technologies. This paper describes key elements of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency report titled “Thermal Desorption Applications Manual for Treating Nonhazardous Petroleum Contaminated Soils.”1 The applications manual describes the types, mechanical and operating characteristics of thermal desorption technologies that are commercially available to treat petroleum-contaminated soils. It also provides step-by-step procedures to rate the critical success factors influencing the general applicability of thermal desorption at a particular site. These factors include site, waste and soil characteristics, regulatory requirements, and process equipment design and operating characteristics. Procedures are provided to determine the types of thermal desorption systems that are...