Direct-push subsurface logging tool that detects VOC contamination in real time by heating soil against a permeable membrane and transferring partitioned vapours to surface detectors (PID, FID, ECD). Produces a continuous vertical profile of VOC distribution.
The Membrane Interface Probe is advanced by direct-push rig to depths typically up to 30 metres. A semi-permeable membrane in the probe wall is heated to roughly 120 degrees Celsius, volatilizing VOCs from the surrounding soil. A carrier gas sweeps the vapours up through the rod string to surface-mounted detectors: photoionization (PID) for aromatic and chlorinated VOCs, flame ionization (FID) for petroleum hydrocarbons, and electron capture (ECD) for halogenated compounds.
MIP delivers continuous vertical profiles of VOC distribution and is a near-standard tool for high-resolution site characterization at chlorinated solvent and petroleum sites. It is qualitative to semi-quantitative; results are routinely confirmed by discrete-depth soil and groundwater sampling at MIP-identified depths.
Also known as: MIP, membrane interface probe.
In-Situ Chemical Oxidation (ISCO): treatment approach
In-situ chemical oxidation: injection of a chemical oxidant — permanganate, persulfate, or Fenton's reagent — directly into contaminated soil or groundwater to destroy dissolved-phase organic contaminants without excavation.
The regulatory metric for thermal destruction performance, expressed as the percentage of a target contaminant destroyed across the system. Common permit thresholds range from 99.99 percent for general hazardous organics to 99.9999 percent (six nines) for PCBs, dioxins, and PFAS.
The duration that gas, vapor, or solids remain inside the heated zone of a thermal treatment unit; together with temperature and turbulence, one of the three governing parameters of complete contaminant destruction.
Liquid that has percolated through contaminated soil, waste, or stockpiles, dissolving and carrying contaminants downward to groundwater or to a collection system. The principal migration pathway for PFAS, dissolved metals, salts, and hydrocarbons from impacted sites.
Laboratory method that oxidizes PFAS precursors in a sample into measurable perfluoroalkyl acids, then quantifies the difference against a pre-oxidation baseline. Reveals the hidden precursor mass that targeted PFAS analysis alone misses.