This project’s vision was to take an extremely successful technology transfer model from the field of education and transfer it to SERDP and ESTCP in a way that combines the best elements of the three technology transfer channels: On-Demand, End-User Focused, and Internet Micro-Lectures.

This project produced 11 videos, which are briefly summarized below. Specifically, seven videos focus on managing chemicals of concern in the environment, two videos address novel energies, one video highlights noise monitoring, and one video addresses management of unexploded ordnance (UXO).

Environmental Restoration micro-lectures:

• Performance and Costs for In Situ Remediation at 235 Sites
  • The remediation community lacks accurate and reliable performance and cost data for commonly used in situ technologies. This video highlights an ESTCP project (ER-201120) led by GSI Environmental scientist Travis McGuire that mined data from 235 sites (largely in California, Texas, and Florida) and developed a performance database.
  • The dataset suggests that concentration reductions of 0.5 to 2.0 orders of magnitude (70-99%) are typical when using the most common in situ remedial technologies for groundwater treatment of chlorinated solvents. Importantly, performance is not correlated with project costs and concentration rebound is most common at chemical oxidation sites versus other methodologies.
• Carbon Dioxide Radiocarbon Analysis to Quantify Organic Contaminant Degradation, MNA, and More
  • Groundwater contamination by chlorinated solvents is a common environmental problem. This video describes the need to understand if and how fast chlorinated solvents will naturally degrade (i.e., monitored natural attenuation [MNA]).
  • This video features a SERDP project (ER-2338) led by Dr. Thomas Boyd combined CO₂ respiration, CO₂ radiocarbon content and a zone of influence model to calculate biodegradation of chlorinated solvent groundwater plumes at Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego. The team observed natural degradation of approximately 90kg/year of chlorinated solvents, suggesting a 1,500 kg plume might be largely biodegraded in 17 years, provided no additional source materials.
• Biologically-Mediated Abiotic Degradation of Chlorinated Ethenes: A New Conceptual Framework
  • This video describes the role that reactive minerals have in natural degradation of chlorinated solvents in groundwater.
  • This video features a SERDP project (ER-2532) led by Dr. Michele Scherer at the University of Iowa, that investigated the role that reactive minerals like magnetite alone and in the presence of reactive iron may have in chlorinated solvent cleanup. Dr. Scherer’s project was awarded the 2018 SERDP Project-of-the-Year Award, in part, because results significantly improved the understanding of pathways and factors controlling abiotic degradation of chlorinated ethenes and provided insights on aquifer properties that are (and are not) important for predicting whether plumes have the potential to be attenuated by abiotic mineral-based reactions.
• Practical Assessment and Optimization of Redox-Based Groundwater Remediation Technologies
  • Many approaches to remediation of impacted groundwater rely on degradation processes that are based on redox reactions. This video describes redox criteria: thermodynamics (will the reaction occur), kinetics (will the reaction go fast enough), and capacity (will it go far enough) and how existing methods (usually oxidation reduction potential measurement with a platinum electrode) are repeatedly inadequate.
  • This video also features a project from Dr. Paul Tratnyek and team at Oregon Health and Science University who developed new characterization methods based on chemical redox/reactivity probes (CRPs) under ESTCP project ER-2308. Batch test results shows a strong correlation between redox measured with the probes and reduction rates. Field-scale tests showed that CRPs can be used for rapid screening and are useful for natural attenuation studies and engineered remediation technologies. 
• Improved Methods for Distinguishing Between Vapor Intrusion and Indoor Sources of VOCs
  • This video explains the basics of vapor intrusion and why identifying the source is important prior to remediation. Vapor intrusion is migration of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from the substance into indoor air. Previously, indoor air testing was considered a simple way to confirm the presence of vapor intrusion (e.g., when groundwater contaminants were detected in indoor air samples, groundwater was considered to be the source), and other potential sources (i.e., consumer products) were disregarded. Improper source attribution can lead to improper and sometimes costly remediation.
  • This video also describes an ESTCP project ER-201119) led by Dr. Thomas McHugh at GSI Environmental that developed and validated a step-wise investigation procedure using commercially available equipment to distinguish between vapor intrusion and indoor sources of VOCs in real time. Using a hand-held meter, real-time measurements can pinpoint sources of vapor (i.e., a consumer product in a cabinet or a floor drain), which allows investigators to quickly react.
• 1,4-Dioxane: Do We have the Right Conceptual Site Model for Managing Impacted Groundwater Sites
  • There is a lack of empirical data on how 1,4-dioxane behaves in the environment. This video features a SERDP-funded project (ER-2307) led by Dr. David Adamson at GSI Environmental that sought to build a better conceptual model for this chemical via “big data” studies, bench-scale treatability tests, and modeling and field studies. Notably, plumes were not as large as anticipated based on physical-chemical properties. Specifically, at 105 sites where dioxane and chlorinated solvents co-occurred, dioxane plumes were smaller than those of chlorinated solvents 56% of the time. Additionally, 1,4-dioxane is attenuating at many sites, which increases the viability of MNA and biodegradation-based remedies.
• Third Generation Site Characterization in the Subsurface
  • Third-generation techniques detecting soil coils, designed to get better results in the subsurface. First- and second-generation site characterization methods are biased toward highly transmissive zones and have limitations in sample preservation. This video describes a potential third-generation site characterization method: Cryogenic Core Collection (C3), which utilizes in situ freezing of cores to limit losses from sample tubes and preserve pore fluids. Batches of samples are analyzed later in a laboratory and are more representative of in situ conditions than data generated from field-processing of unfrozen cores.  
  • This video describes the development of C3 via a SERDP project (ER-1559) and its field testing in an ESTCP project (ER-201582).
  • This video focuses on the optimization of C3 via ER-1740, which was led by Dr. Tom Sale at Colorado State University and team. It describes goals for sample recovery and presentation, and how benchmarks are achieved using C3, and includes field videos, diagrams, and photos demonstrating the technology.    

Emissions and Waste Reduction micro-lectures:

• Subsurface Thermal Energy Storage for Improved Heating and Air Conditioning Efficiency
  • Geothermal heat pump systems can use the ground as a heat sink (i.e., for air conditioning buildings in the summer) and a heat source (i.e., for heating buildings in the winter). This video describes how geothermal heat pump systems work and can increase energy efficiency. It also explains how “ground loop” systems can become imbalanced if there are unequal heating and cooling loads from winter to summer. This is problematic because almost every U.S. city is unbalanced and cooling dominated, so the subsurface with heat up without some sort of intervention.
  • This video features an ESTCP project (EW-201013), led by Dr. Ronald Falta at Clemson University, where a geothermal system was optimized by adding a dry fluid cooler to harvest “cold” during the winter. At a Marine Corps station in Beaufort, SC, this technology increased energy efficiency by 30% after 2.5 years of operation.
• Dynamic Exterior Lighting for Energy and Cost Savings in DoD Installations
  • The Department of Defense's (DoD) annual energy bill is approximately $4 billion per year, about 50% of which is spent on electricity. Exterior lighting accounts for about 10% of electricity used at DoD installations. This video describes an ESTCP project EW-201141 that demonstrated and quantified how a light emitting diode light source, combined with smart system and controls, can be used to achieve significant energy savings and improve illumination and exterior lighting applications across the country.

Weapons Systems and Platforms micro-lecture:

• Improved Military Noise Monitoring System
  • Military bases produce loud noises via testing and training. This video discusses how blast noise from explosions can travel tens of kilometers without much attenuation, drawing complaints from citizens that are sometimes unwarranted. This can ultimately cause the DoD to change training times or relocate entire facilities, so effective noise monitoring is critical. 
  • This video describes an ESTCP project (WP-201117) that created a noise monitoring system that accurately detects and classifies military noise, rejects non-military noise, and runs effectively for long periods in various weather conditions. The system received over 33 million noise events during its 12-month deployment, which it filtered down to 450,000 blast aircraft, and small arms noise events. 

Munitions Response micro-lecture:

• Factors Affecting Munitions Mobility Underwater and In Situ Measurements
  • The DoD is committed to managing UXO in various environments. This video describes how UXO can be found in former military training areas, as well as war zones, and that the danger associated with UXO is that they did not explode when employed and still pose a risk of detonation. Because of the potential danger associated with moving them, most UXO are managed in place.
  • This video features a SERDP project (MR-2320) led by Dr. Joseph Calatoni at the Naval Research Laboratory, where replicate munitions were observed in natural, underwater environments under extreme storm conditions. The team’s work fed into a conceptual site model, which can predict whether issues such as a large storm or hurricane will move UXO away from its known resting place.