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S E C O R <br /> • 2003 Feasibility Study Report and Site Assessment Work Plan <br /> July 18, 2003 <br /> Page 12 <br /> Solubility, vapor pressure, organic carbon partitioning coefficient, and density affect the mobility of <br /> the contaminants. COCs detected in soil and groundwater at the site generally have relatively high <br /> solubility in water, high vapor pressure, and low organic carbon partition coefficient (Ko,). <br /> Additionally, COCs at the site would be expected to easily leach from the unsaturated zone and <br /> move with groundwater in the water-bearing zone. <br /> The persistence of the contaminants is related to their degradability. In the subsurface, the primary <br /> mode of degradation would be biodegradation by indigenous microorganisms. CDCs at the Site <br /> have been shown to readily degrade in the subsurface by anaerobic and aerobic mechanisms. <br /> 4.2 Model Selection <br /> Fate and transport models that describe the migration of constituents in groundwater must have the <br /> ability to simulate the on-site conditions and long-term chemical fate in groundwater, determine the <br /> distance traveled by a constituent in groundwater at any given time, and predict the constituent <br /> concentration distributions in groundwater for future time based on historical data trends. In <br /> addition, the models should also be validated and also be readily acceptable by the regulatory <br /> agencies. <br /> The RISKPROTM system, which is a management tool designed to help users perform exposure <br /> assessments, was used to develop the model. For the groundwater simulations, the Analytical <br /> Transient 1-, 2-, 3-Dimensional Model AT123D (G.T. Yeh, 1981) was used to compute and predict <br /> the transient spread of the contaminant plume through the groundwater aquifer, estimate the <br /> dissolved concentration of the chemical in groundwater resulting from a mass release over a source <br /> area, and assess the potential down-gradient impact and extent of the three CDCs in groundwater. <br /> 4.3 Modeling Strategy <br /> The first step in developing the model is to select the COC. Selection of the chemicals of concern is <br /> based on analytical results and the physical properties of the chemicals found at the Site. This <br /> review includes physical properties like solubility in water, solubility in organics, maximum <br /> concentrations of the chemicals, and the potential health impact based on the MCL's for the <br /> underlying aquifer. Based on all these factors, MtBE, TPHg, and TPHd, were selected as the <br /> chemicals that best represented the site-specific conditions for the "worst-case" scenario. <br /> The next step in performing any fate and transport analysis is to develop a conceptual model. This <br /> is done by initially developing a representative site stratigraphy model. Boring log and aquifer test <br /> data were integrated to determine the physical parameters of the aquifer material. <br /> The model was calibrated for each of the selected COC consistent with the procedures presented in <br /> ASTM standard D5880-95 (ASTM, 1996) and D5981-96 (ASTM, 1996b). Model transport <br /> parameters conditions were adjusted in a systematic manner until an acceptable fit was obtained <br /> between the model solution and the target concentration data. This initial calibration was conducted <br /> according to the following approach: <br /> 1. Calibrating the source concentration to a final source concentration, without <br /> modifying the dispersivity and chemical reaction terms. <br /> 11Chevron\1001621\REPORTS\2003\2003FS\FS 2003 revD.doc <br />