Microscale Colloidal Transport Simulations for Groundwater Remediation

The injection of zero valent iron particles is a promising approach for the remediation of contaminated aquifer systems. In this framework microscale numerical simulations are a powerful tool to investigate transport and deposition of colloidal suspensions. The present analysis compare different porous media structures and highlights the role played by the geometry of the medium on the physics of the problem. Extrapolating macroscale parameters of interest in practical applications, results are compared with classical literature correlations, that are inadequate to describe the effect of a complex 3D structure.