MONITORING PERMEABLE REACTIVE BARRIERS USING ELECTRICAL RESISTANCE TOMOGRAPHY

An electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) method is being evaluated as a measurement tool to determine the integrity of permeable reactive barriers (PRBs) during and after construction of the barrier and as a monitoring tool to determine the long-term operational health of the barrier. The method is novel because it inserts the electrodes directly into the barrier itself. Numerical modeling calculations indicate that the ERT method can detect flaws (voids) in the barrier as small as 0.11 m{sup 2} (0.33 m x 0.33 m) when the aspect ratio of the electrodes are 2:1. Laboratory measurements indicate that the change in resistance over time of the iron-filling mixture used to create the PRB is sufficient for ERT to monitor the long-term health of the barrier. The use of this ERT method allows for the cost-effective installation of the barrier, especially when the vadose zone is large, because borehole installation methods, rather than trenching methods, can be used.