Patent ID: 6289714
Filing Date: 2001-09-18
Classification: E21B,G01N,G01V

Abstract:
A method for locally testing underground soil contamination by determining the generation rate of a first contaminant fluid in a porous soil capable of storing a volume of one or more contaminant fluids, this volume yielding corresponding concentrations of said one or more contaminant fluids, said method comprising the steps of:a) making a hole of known dimensions in the soil;b) covering the hole, so as to define a closed cavity of known volume;c) constantly ejecting a second fluid in said cavity, at a constant given flow rate;d) simultaneously continuously collecting fluid samples from said cavity at a location therein away from where said second fluid is ejected, at said constant given flow rate, to create a substantially constant circulation flow of the second fluid in the entire cavity;e) measuring the concentrations of said first contaminant fluid from at least three of said fluid samples collected at a set of known time intervals; andf) computing the generation rate of said first contaminant fluid, from the known volume of the cavity and from the concentrations measured in step (e) originating from samples collected at the known time intervals.