Slurry Cut-off Wall Applications In the Control of Hazardous Waste Leachates

Slurry cut-off walls are non-structural barriers constructed to intercept and impede the flow of fluids underground. There are two basic types of slurry cut-off walls, soil-bentonite (SB) and cement-bentonite (CB). Depending on the nature of the project, either method may have some technical or economic advantage over the other. In both cases, a narrow trench is excavated into the ground using a backhoe or other more specialized equipment. The trench is prevented from collapsing by keeping it full at all times with bentonite slurry similar to drilling mud. In the case of SB walls, the trench is subsequently backfilled with a mixture of soil and bentonite slurry that forms the permanent impervious cut-off wall. With the CB method, cement is added to the slurry which later sets up, forming the permanent seepage barrier.

 
Slurry cut-off walls are being used in an increasing variety of applications to provide a barrier to the lateral underground flow of various fluids. Principal applications are site dewatering, underground pollution control and seepage barriers under dams. In this paper, case studies are used to provide examples of recent applications in the control of leaching hazardous wastes.
 
Projects cited include:
 
– containment of potential leachates from a new paper sludge holding lagoon.
– containment of oil seeping through a reservoir abutment.
– cleanup of a PCB contaminated site.
 
All of the examples are selected because of the unusual conditions under which they were constructed or dramatic evidence of results.
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