A distributed reactivity model for sorption by soils and sediments. 1. Conceptual basis and equilibrium assessments

Contaminant sorption by soils and sediments is characterized as a multiple reaction phenomenon. The approach is predicated on the observation that most natural soils and sediments are intrinsically heterogeneous even at the microscopic scale; that is, variable in composition and structure at both interparticle and intraparticle scales. Heterogeneity is demonstrated for a number of soils which, on the basis of conventional macroscopic properties, would be considered "homogeneous". That such heterogeneities are reflected in sorption reactions which differ between soils and between different fractions of soil is also demonstrated. A composite model, the distributed reactivity model (DRM), is introduced to characterize intrinsic heterogeneities in the properties and behaviors of soils and sediments and to capture the resulting nonlinearities of sorption isotherms. Finally, the significance of particle-scale heterogeneity and distributed reactivity is illustrated by using measured parameters and DRM calculations to characterize differences in the relative sorption behavior of soils comprising different mass fractions of differently reactive components.