FAQ

The minimum that ART does is the following:

Trenching, piping and the associated blowers and/or compressors and the equipment building may be included as a turn-key project. The adaptability and flexibility of the ART Technology lends itself to meet each client/consultant's particular needs. We tailor our service to your expectations to provide the best experience possible.

Yes, we have received closure at many sites and are in the process of receiving closure at many others.

We only need basic information, which includes:

It is a function of several parameters including the height of the water column, the hydraulic conductivity, formation characteristics, as well as what was observed at similar sites. If requested, we can begin with an ART demo to demonstrate the efficacy of the technology and determine design parameters.

The radius of influence is measured, at minimum, by monitoring changes in the following parameters, relative to conditions at start-up time (T0) in nearby monitoring wells.

Some clients have installed piezometers, pressure or temperature sensors. You are encouraged to install any technique you feel would assist you to confirm the radius of influence.

Incremental O&M costs should not exceed what you would expect with a typical air sparging/vapor extraction system. It is anticipated that shortened project life will result in reduced overall O&M costs. At our site in South Bend, Indiana, the consultant determined that, with the ART system, time spent on O&M would be cut in half when compared to the projected time for a typical multi-point remediation system.

No, we have not experienced rebound at any of our closed sites. The Dynamic Subsurface Circulation cell flushes out those pockets of contamination that would otherwise remain trapped in the dead-end zone, the capillary fringe, etc. These trapped pockets of contamination are what would normally contribute to rebound.

At many of our sites, free products have been present. In this case, we start with the evacuation of all fluid in the well (one well volume) and then start the ART operations. Minor influxes of free product into the well will be volatilized by the sparging, circulating, and vapor extractions within the well. At a site in Des Moines, Iowa one ART well removed approximately 10,000 pounds of VOCs in 5 months. Link to CH2M Hill Report.

We have not experienced significant amounts of fouling, biological or mineral, at any of our installations. At one of our retrofitted sites, the previous traditional air sparging/SVE system had experienced major fouling issues; however, we did encounter those issues. One reason is the fact that we have consistent water spraying and jetting downhole, thus washing any buildup of minerals/organisms, and further minimizing stagnant areas for fouling to occur. In the unlikely event we have a fouling issue, a drip system or a metered pump for remote, periodic feed of the appropriate remedy-e.g. bleach or pH adjustment or dispersant/surfactant can easily be installed.

When installing the ART Technology, an electric or pneumatic submersible pump may be used. The majority of our clients choose electric for cost efficiency. However, with the presence of free product in low flow geology or where water levels may drop below the bottom of the well, pneumatic pumps may be suggested. We typically use water pumps; however, environmental pumps are available at an additional charge.

Typically, we supply the pump; the exact pump will be determined during project design. The Low-K Technology does not require a pump. The ART Technology has proven to work at sites where SVE, air sparging, pump and treat, and various injection technologies have not achieved remediation goals or simply stalled out.

The costs will be dependent on:

Our costs include installing the ART or LowPerma system in an existing well, completing the ART or LowPerma wellhead, connecting it to pre-existing remediation facilities/utilities (except power), and starting the system (i.e. balancing the air flows) with the consultant. We then turn the system over to the consultant for operation & maintenance. We are available after start up to ensure system success and provide other follow up duties, as needed. Initial costs for a new installation at a relatively small site without remediation utilities in place are similar to those for an air sparging / soil vapor extraction system. However, ART/LowPerma capital costs could be considerably less, depending on the radius of influence, soil types, and aerial extent of contamination. The ART Technology has proven to do more with fewer points and demonstrated a larger radius of influence at every site where other technologies were already in place, therefore reducing the number of remediation points required, as well as the amount of trenching and piping. The ART Technology has shown reduced time to site closure and lower O&M costs. Therefore, for a typical site, TOTAL PROJECT COSTS may be approximately 50% (or less) than a typical air sparging/soil vapor extraction system alone and much lower than a pump and treat system. Retrofitted system total project costs are significantly lower than for a site with no existing remediation system equipment installed. This is because much of the remediation capital infrastructure, such as blower, compressor, pump and wells, etc. may already be in place. The client will be able to use capital equipment already purchased and won't have to start over.