Case Studies: Sea Power 101
Over the past few years, Sea-Chem has repeatedly demonstrated the efficacy of Sea Power 101 in a variety of operational contexts and on a range of contaminations, both in the UK and across Europe. As a result, the product has won plaudits for its ability to deliver high performance alongside its impeccable green credentials.
Award Winning Bioremediation: Gasworks, Chertsey
At the 2008 Brownfield Briefing Remediation Innovation Awards, Tamdown won ‘Best Use of a Single Remediation Technique’ for their treatment of a former gasworks in Surrey using Sea Power 101. Applied to vented biopiles housed in large poly tunnels, Tamdown were able to treat and re-use 3,250 tonnes of contaminated soil.
Method: 
Tamdown installed long poly tunnels to establish a greenhouse effect around the biopiles, thereby helping to optimize the bioremediation process. Sea Power 101 was then applied to help emulsify the hydrocarbons present within the soil – making them easier to break down – and to stimulate the native microbial population during their digestion. Air was continually circulated through the biopile using a low vacuum extraction system, preventing the need for mechanical turning and thus retaining heat and minimizing any disturbance to the soil’s microbial populations.
Results: Prior to the bioremediation, the site’s mean average T0 concentrations were 2,410mg/kg TPH and 1,100mg/kg total PAH. Following treatment with Sea Power 101 over a period of ten weeks, these levels fell to just 394mg/kg and 218mg/kg respectively, representing a 90% reduction in overall contaminant loading. Brownfield Briefing concluded that this was an achievement unlikely to be possible in such a short timescale in the winter months by any other bioremediation method.
Evaluation: Eliminating the need for the transportation and disposal of 200 lorry loads of hazardous waste to landfill and the importation of the necessary backfill, Tamdown’s bioremediation and re-use of soils resulted in a saving of £195,000, which equates to more than 50% of the total contract sum.
For more information on this case study, please visit the Tamdown and Brownfield Briefing websites.
Outstanding Bioremediation in Winter: West Thurrock, Essex
Sea Power 101 was again able to prove its efficacy when it was utilized on a former industrial site in West Thurrock, Essex, under some extremely challenging conditions.
Method: Formerly a scrapyard, the contaminated site was heavily laden with diesel and other fuels. Prior to treatment the TPH of the soil ranged between 8,000mg/kg and 10,000mg/kg. Bioremediation took place between November and December 2010, when the weather in the southeast of England was extremely cold (see graphs below). Soil from the site was mechanically screened and then sprayed directly with Sea Power 101. It was then left to degrade on vented biopiles for a period of eight weeks.
Results: Soil samples were taken after the treatment period, and showed a new average TPH level of 775mg/kg (Range: 51mg/kg-1800mg/kg), which represented a reduction in overall human-health contamination of 91.4%. The site also passed the stringent leachate targets for the soil of 930μg/l, TPH. From seven leachate samples, the average contamination after eight weeks of treatment was 223μg/l (Range: <10 μg/l-460μg/l), less than 25% of what was required. Full detail of the results, are available here.
Evaluation: Given the exceptionally low temperatures during this period, our client had concerns about the level of microbial activity that could be expected at the site and about the effect that this might have on the speed and extent of the bioremediation. However, the results proved that even under these extremely testing conditions, Sea Power 101 dramatically enhanced the natural degradation process at the site.
Other Notable Case Studies
Former Russian Air Base, Werneuchen, Germany: Land underneath this site had become contaminated over a long period of time by a mixture of lubricant oils, hydraulic fluids and aviation fuel. Following excavation, the soil was reconstituted in biopiles and applied with Sea Power 101. The vast majority of hydrocarbons were removed in the first month, and the site was fully remediated within four months.
Former Coking and Tar Works, County Durham: An area of 20,000m2 had been contaminated with heavy oils and other toxic materials at this old industrial site. Soil was excavated and placed on windrows, and treated with Sea Power 101 to accelerate the bioremediation process. The whole facility was successfully remediated after four months of treatment.
Private Property, Inverness: Following the failure of a domestic heating system, kerosene contaminated the ground underneath two private houses, producing a noxious atmosphere in one of them. Sea Power 101 was injected into the earth, along with oxygen, in a conventional in-situ process. The site was fully remediated with minimum disturbance to the residents.
Farm Land, Avonbridge, Near Bristol: Failure of a valve on a brand new tanker carrying waste oils and diesel led to significant hydrocarbon leakage on this arable land. A very large excavation was carried out, and contaminated soil was placed in windrows and treated with Sea Power 101. Full remediation of the land was possible in six months.
Tar Factory, Rositz, Germany: This site had been producing tar for over 100 hundred years before it was decommissioned in 1992. During the Second World War, the factory was bombed causing extensive soil pollution, which was left untreated until the 1990s. Sea Power 101 was used on the site and showed itself to be highly effective in reducing the overall hydrocarbon content of the soil and in particular the notoriously stubborn PAHs.