| Autor: |
Oudega TJ; Institute of Hydraulic Engineering and Water Resources Management E222/2, TU Wien, Karlsplatz 13, A-1040 Vienna, Austria.; Interuniversity Cooperation Centre (ICC) Water & Health, A-1060 Vienna, Austria., Lindner G; Institute of Hydraulic Engineering and Water Resources Management E222/2, TU Wien, Karlsplatz 13, A-1040 Vienna, Austria.; Medical University of Vienna, Institute for Hygiene and Applied Immunology, Water Hygiene, Kinderspitalgasse 15, A-1090 Vienna, Austria.; Interuniversity Cooperation Centre (ICC) Water & Health, A-1060 Vienna, Austria., Derx J; Institute of Hydraulic Engineering and Water Resources Management E222/2, TU Wien, Karlsplatz 13, A-1040 Vienna, Austria.; Interuniversity Cooperation Centre (ICC) Water & Health, A-1060 Vienna, Austria., Farnleitner AH; Research Group Environmental Microbiology and Molecular Diagnostics 166/5/3, Institute of Chemical, Environmental and Bioscience Engineering, TU Wien, Gumpendorferstraße 1a, A-1060 Vienna, Austria.; Karl Landsteiner University for Health Sciences, Department Physiology, Pharmacology and Microbiology, Research Division Water Quality & Health, 3500 Krems, Austria.; Interuniversity Cooperation Centre (ICC) Water & Health, A-1060 Vienna, Austria., Sommer R; Medical University of Vienna, Institute for Hygiene and Applied Immunology, Water Hygiene, Kinderspitalgasse 15, A-1090 Vienna, Austria.; Interuniversity Cooperation Centre (ICC) Water & Health, A-1060 Vienna, Austria., Blaschke AP; Institute of Hydraulic Engineering and Water Resources Management E222/2, TU Wien, Karlsplatz 13, A-1040 Vienna, Austria.; Interuniversity Cooperation Centre (ICC) Water & Health, A-1060 Vienna, Austria., Stevenson ME; Institute of Hydraulic Engineering and Water Resources Management E222/2, TU Wien, Karlsplatz 13, A-1040 Vienna, Austria.; Interuniversity Cooperation Centre (ICC) Water & Health, A-1060 Vienna, Austria. |
| Abstrakt: |
Groundwater contamination and transport of viruses and bacteria in aquifers are a major concern worldwide. To ascertain the ability of these aquifers to remove pathogens, tracer tests with microbial surrogates are carried out. These tests are laborious and may require special permits, and therefore, column tests are often done instead. Unfortunately, results from column tests tend to grossly overestimate removal rates when compared to the field scale, which can lead to an underestimation of groundwater contamination risks. Scale is an important consideration when examining pathogen transport through porous media, as pathogen removal is rarely a linear process. In this study, field tests were carried out with endospores of Bacillus subtilis and coliphage phiX174 over a distance of 25 m in an alluvial gravel aquifer near Vienna, Austria. The sandy gravel material from the field site was also used in column tests with the same tracers. Both attachment-detachment and colloid filtration theory were used to model these tests, as well as log-removal rates per meter. The results show that the spatial removal rate (log/m) is approximately 2 orders of magnitude higher on the column scale, when compared to the field. A comparison with the literature showed a correlation between the heterogeneity of the porous media and the difference in removal rates between the column and field scale. |
