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  Contaminant-reactive geocomposite mat and method of manufacture and useUSPTO Application #: 20060286888Title: Contaminant-reactive geocomposite mat and method of manufacture and use Abstract: Reactive geocomposite mats, and their method of manufacture, for treating contaminants in soil or water that allow the passage of essentially non-contaminated water therethrough. The geocomposite mat includes a pre-formed woven or non-woven geotextile, having a thickness of about 6 mm to about 200 mm, and having, a porosity sufficient to receive a powdered or granular contaminant-reactive material, contaminant-sorptive material, or a contaminant-neutralizing material (hereinafter collectively referred to as “contaminant-reactant material” or “contaminant-reactive material”) throughout its thickness, or in any portion of the thickness across its entire major surface(s). The powdered or granular contaminant-reactive material is disposed within the pores of the previously formed, high loft geotextile mat to surround the fibers, e.g., by vacuum or vibrating the high loft mat while in contact with the contaminant-reactive material to allow the powdered or granular contaminant-reactive material to flow by gravity into the pores of the previously formed geotextile and vibrational forces. Liquid-permeable cover sheets are adhered to the upper and lower major surfaces of the filled geotextile to prevent the powdered or granular material from escaping from the geotextile during transportation and installation. (end of abstract) Agent: Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP - Chicago, IL, US Inventors: James T. Olsta, Charles J. Hornaday, Robert J. Trauger, Jerald W. Darlington USPTO Applicaton #: 20060286888 - Class: 442417000 (USPTO) Related Patent Categories: Fabric (woven, Knitted, Or Nonwoven Textile Or Cloth, Etc.), Nonwoven Fabric (i.e., Nonwoven Strand Or Fiber Material), Including Particulate Material Other Than Strand Or Fiber Material The Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20060286888. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] The present invention is directed to a reactive geocomposite for controlling or preventing the further spread of contaminants in soil or water. More particularly, the geocomposite described herein includes a reactive core formed from a high loft geotextile that is filled with a powdered or granular reactive material, such as activated carbon, coke breeze, peat moss, polymeric ion exchange resins, polymeric adsorbing resins; zero-valent iron, apatite, organophilic clay, zeolite, diatomaceous earth or mixtures thereof and having a liquid-permeable cover sheet attached to the upper and lower major surfaces of the filled geotextile. BACKGROUND AND PRIOR ART [0002] The prior art is replete with methods and articles used to confine or store a wide variety of environmental contaminants ranging from completely capping, in-situ, contaminated sediments that are left in-place in underwater environments; terrestrial landfills wherein dredged or otherwise collected contaminated sediments are placed within an engineered disposal site surrounded with an impervious liner system and capped with an impervious material; and the use of a reactive mat and/or reactive backfill that surrounds the contaminated material. Examples of reactive mats are found in U.S. Pat. No. 6,284,681 B1 ('681) and published application US 2002/0151241 A1 ('241). The reactive mats described in these two publications include one or more layers of reactive material each surrounded by geotextiles that allow contaminated liquid to pass through the reactive mat for sorption or reaction of the contaminate with a reactive material contained between the geotextile layers, and in the case of the '241 published application, the mat may be deployed vertically. [0003] One of the major problems encountered with the use of reactive mats for controlling or confining contaminated materials, or in controlling or preventing leaching of contaminants from sediments and preventing the contaminants from entering ground water supplies or from traversing through a lake or ocean soil interface into the lake or ocean, is in the ability to provide a transportable mat having a sufficient volume or thickness of reactive material so that the mat provides very long term protection without the necessity of periodic replacement. The reactive mats described in the '681 patent and in the '241 publication provide alternating layers of geotextile/reactive material/geotextile/reactive material since a sufficient thickness of reactive material cannot be provided in a single reactive material core layer without that reactive material being lost during transportation or installation. [0004] This assignee's U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,237,945 ('945) and 5,389,166 ('166) describe the manufacture of a water barrier formed from a clay-fiber mat that may include, intermixed with a powdered or granular bentonite clay, a powdered or granular liquid-interacting material, e.g., a contaminant-reactant, or providing the contaminant-reactant as a separate layer in the water barrier product. The water barrier mat formed in accordance with the '945 and '166 patents is manufactured by laying down geosynthetic fibers and the water swellable clay, with or without the contaminant-reactant material, simultaneously. In this manner, a geosynthetic composite material can be manufactured wherein the geosynthetic fibers are surrounded by the water-swellable clay, with or without the contaminant-reactant material, in initially forming a relatively thick geotextile. Such a mat must be subsequently consolidated after the initial formation of the mixture of powdered or granular material and fibers in an attempt to secure the fibers in position surrounding the powdered or granular material. The following problems may be encountered with filled mats manufactured by simultaneously mixing individual fibers together with powdered or granular materials in accordance with this assignee's U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,237,945 and 5,389,166: [0005] (1) Because interior fibers within the geotextile are not secured to adjacent fibers, particularly in thick mats, there would be lateral movement of powdered or granular material within the mat, particularly at the center of the mat thickness; (2) Any reactive materials that have a relatively high hardness, e.g., coke breeze, will prevent needle-punching as a means to consolidate the mats described in the '945 and '166 patents, since the hard materials will cause needle breakage and frequent replacement of worn needles; (3) Needle-punching as a means to consolidate the '945 and '166 mats is limited to relatively thin mats, e.g., less than 1 inch or 2.54 cm (25.4 mm), since fibers are too short to traverse the thickness of thicker mats for effective connection; and (4) Because of the shifting of fibers and powdered or granular material during manufacture of the '945 and '166 mats, the powdered or granular material will not be placed within the mat in a consistent quantity (weight per unit volume) and, therefore, will not provide consistent contaminant reaction, contaminant sorption, or contaminant neutralization per unit area. Another issue with the '945 and '166 mats is that when water swellable sodium bentonite clay is utilized, with or without the reactive material, when the sodium bentonite clay swells, the resulting swell pressure restricts the aqueous flow through the mat. SUMMARY [0006] In brief, described herein are reactive geocomposite mats, and their method of manufacture, for controlling contaminants in soil or water that allow the passage of essentially non-contaminated water therethrough. The geocomposite mat includes a pre-formed woven or non-woven geotextile, having a thickness of about 6 mm to about 200 mm, preferably about 10 mm to about 100 mm, and having a porosity sufficient to receive a powdered or granular contaminant-reactive material, contaminant-sorptive material, or a contaminant-neutralizing material (hereinafter collectively referred to as "contaminant-reactant material" or "contaminant-reactive material") throughout its thickness, or in any portion of the thickness, across its entire major surface(s). The powdered or granular contaminant-reactive material is disposed within the pores of the previously formed, high loft geotextile mat to surround the fibers, e.g., by vacuum suction or by vibrating the high loft mat while in contact with the contaminant-reactive material to allow the powdered or granular contaminant-reactive material to flow, by gravity and vibrational forces, into the pores of the previously formed geotextile. Liquid-permeable cover sheets are adhered to the upper and lower major surfaces of the filled geotextile to prevent the powdered or granular material from escaping from the geotextile during transportation and installation. Optionally, the edges of the filled geotextile can be sealed, such as by providing the upper and lower cover sheets slightly larger than the dimensions of the geotextile and gluing the extra cover sheet material to the edges of the filled geotextile or heat sealing them together. Other edge sealing options include sewing, needlepunching, and ultrasonic welding of the cover sheets together or by applying a separate, edge-covering material that can be glued, heat sealed or ultrasonically welded to the cover sheets. Edge sealing materials may be liquid-impermeable or liquid-permeable. [0007] Suitable powdered or granular contaminant-reactive materials include organophilic clay, activated carbon, coke breeze, zero-valent iron, apatite, zeolite, peat moss, polymeric ion exchange resins, polymeric adsorbents and mixtures thereof. If the contaminant-reactive material is lighter than water, where the reactive mat is intended for sub-aqueous disposition, such as activated coke breeze, the geotextile fibers will be a material that his heavier than water, such as a polyester. Any geosynthetic fibers may be used where the reactive material is heavier than water, such as polyolefins, e.g., polypropylene, polyethylene and copolymers thereof; rayon; polyesters; nylon; acrylic polymers and copolymers; polyamides; polyamide copolymers; polyurethanes, and the like. [0008] The method of manufacture permits the manufacture of a geocomposite article that includes a contaminant-reactant material that is structurally secure, without lateral movement, and contains contaminant-reactant material uniformly disposed throughout the thickness, or throughout a desired upper and/or lower portion of the thickness of the geocomposite. The geocomposite can be manufactured to provide either a flexible or a rigid geocomposite material, and permits the manufacture of various modified geocomposites; geocomposite articles that include a contaminant-reactant material, such as a zeolite or an organophilic clay with or without a water-absorbent material for treatment of contaminants in water, in an organic liquid, or in a mixture of water and an organic liquid; a minimum of leakage of powdered or granular materials held by the pre-formed mat; the application of layer(s) of liquid-permeable films or sheets of material over both major surfaces of the article to confine the granular or powdered material in place within the pre-formed geotextile; the application of solid or liquid adhesive materials or compositions to one or both major surfaces and/or to any of the edges of the geocomposite article for complete retention of essentially all powdered and/or granular materials; the capability of inserting one or more rigidifying materials into, or onto, the geocomposite article during manufacture, such as a sheet of perforated fiberglass; rope; cardboard; relatively rigid, liquid-permeable corrugated materials, e.g., corrugated cardboard, and the like at some point at or between the top and bottom major surfaces of the geocomposite article to provide various degrees of flexibility or rigidity; the capability of manufacturing the geocomposite articles without the necessity of a consolidation step; and providing various sizes, shapes and weights of pre-formed, high loft geotextiles to achieve the benefits of each. If a water-absorbent, water-swellable material, such as sodium bentonite is included with the contaminant-reactive material, it should be included in an amount less than about 20 lb/ft.sup.3, preferably 0 to about 10 lb/ft.sup.3, more preferably 0 to about 5 lb/ft.sup.3 so that, upon swelling, it does not prevent the flow of contaminated water through the geocomposite mat. [0009] The contaminant-reactant material can be withheld from an upper or lower major surface of the high loft geotextile, if desired, to provide a space or area for the contaminant-reactant material to expand upon reaction or sorption with, or neutralization of the contaminants; or to provide areas for the addition of other powdered or granular materials, such as an organophilic clay, a zeolite or other contaminant-treating material. For example, the contaminant-reactant material can be omitted throughout a predetermined thickness at the top major surface or the bottom major surface. Alternatively, a powdered or granular water-swellable clay material can be applied in a relatively high concentration at or near the edges of the geocomposite article adjacent to one or both major surfaces to permit the contaminant-reactant material layer to extrude through a water-permeable cover layer to a planar edge surface immediately above and/or below one or both exterior major surfaces, thereby creating a sealing layer of contaminant-reactant material capable of sealing at overlaps and seams between adjacent or overlapping geocomposite articles. [0010] As shown in FIG. 6, it is preferred to seal the edges 193 of the filled geocomposite articles 10 by providing excess cover material 192 and/or 194 in an amount sufficient so that one or both of the cover layers 192 and/or 194 can be overlapped and adhered together, at or above the edge 193, via an adhesive, thermal bonding (heat-sealing), needle punching, or sonic welding. [0011] Accordingly, one aspect of the geocomposite articles described herein is to provide a new and improved article of manufacture and method of making the article by incorporating a powdered or granular contaminant-reactant material into a high loft, pre-formed mat of interconnected, geotextile fibers. [0012] A further aspect of the geocomposite articles described herein is to provide a new and improved article of manufacture including a powdered or granular contaminant-reactant or contaminant-interacting material, wherein the material is selected from the group consisting of an organophilic clay, a zeolite, a contaminant-absorbent, a contaminant-adsorbent, an ion-exchange material, a contaminant-reactant, a contaminant-neutralizing material, and mixtures thereof as separately applied or intermixed material. The powdered or granular materials may be applied as an admixture, or applied sequentially within a pre-formed textile mat having a sufficient apparent opening size, e.g., about 0.5 to about 6 mm, preferably about 1 mm to about 4 mm, to receive the powdered or granular material in an amount of at least about 10 lb/ft.sup.3 up to about 150 lb/ft.sup.3, preferably about 30 lb/ft.sup.3 to about 100 lb/ft.sup.3, throughout the thickness, or throughout any upper or lower portion of the thickness of the pre-formed mat. Preferably, the powdered and/or granular material will occupy about 50% to about 99.9% by volume of the pre-formed geotextile mat, more preferably about 80% to about 99.9% of the pre-formed mat. [0013] The above and other aspects and advantages of the geocomposite articles and their method of manufacture will become apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments taken in conjunction with the drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0014] FIGS. 1 and 3 are partially broken-away, schematic views of alternate methods of manufacture and apparatus used to make the geocomposite articles described herein; [0015] FIG. 2a is an enlarged, partially broken-away side view of a reactive geocomposite article formed with upper and lower layers of powdered or granular contaminant-reactant material; [0016] FIG. 2b is an enlarged, partially broken-away side view of a reactive geocomposite article of that has been filled with a powdered or granular contaminant-reactant material, such as an organophillic clay, over the entire thickness of the mat; [0017] FIGS. 4a, 4b and 4c are enlarged, broken-away side views of articles manufactured as described herein that include intermediate liquid-permeable sheets or nets of strengthening materials and include a powdered or granular contaminant-reactant material in only a portion of the thickness of the article; [0018] FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the geocomposite article described herein oriented vertically, adjacent to a sea/soil interface, for sorbing contaminants, e.g., hydrocarbons from a petroleum fraction, that leach through soil and travel through the sea/soil interface, into the sea, to prevent the contaminants from traversing the sea/soil interface; and [0019] FIG. 6 is a partially broken-away side view of an edge of the geocomposite article having excess material from upper and lower cover sheets adhered together, either adhesively, by heat-sealing, or by ultrasonic welding, to seal the edges of the article. 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