Zero-Valent Metals Provide Possible Solution To Groundwater Problems

Real life isn't supposed to be this simple. Two hundred twenty tons of iron filings, buried underground in a giant trough, have replaced elaborate machinery to clean up contaminated groundwater that has plagued a former Intersil semiconductor manufacturing plant in Sunnyvale, Calif., for more than a decade. The iron barrier is breaking down toxic tridiloroethene into benign products, yielding water that passes muster with the Environmental Protection Agency. And where an aboveground pump-and-treat facility once stood, is a newly paved parking lot. There are no parts to break, there is no need for electricity or maintenance, and, its creators say, the underground wall should last indefinitely. Soon, this system will begin saving Intersil more than $300,000 per year that the company was paying to operate, maintain, and manage the pump-and-treat facility. The property, which was deemed unusable for the life of the 30-year cleanup process because of the need for constant access and monitoring, can ...