Keywords
Citation
(2000), "Penetrometer sampler system", Sensor Review, Vol. 20 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/sr.2000.08720aad.019
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2000, MCB UP Limited
Penetrometer sampler system
Keywords Spectral analysis, Contamination
Applicant: US Army Corps of Engineers (US)
Patent number: US5902939
Publication date: 11 May 1999
Title: Penetrometer sampler system for subsurface spectral analysis of contaminated media
The invention pertains to a direct push, small diameter fluorescence based penetrometer system for performing in situ spectral analysis on subsurface liquid or gaseous samples. The invention is configured to collect liquid or gaseous analyte samples within the penetrometer's sample chamber through a port that is juxtaposed to a heating element that accelerates the separation of volatile chemical materials from the soil matrix. Fibre optic cables are linked to surface mounted real-time data acquisition/processing equipment from the sample chamber. The penetrometer sampling device is also equipped with a standard penetrometer electric cone sensor module containing cone and sleeve strain sensors that are used to calculate soil classification/layering in real-time during penetration. The invention integrates soil classification/layering data with spectral signature data of suspect subsurface liquid or gaseous fluids for assessing whether the subsurface soil and ground water regions are contaminated without the requirement of transporting the sample and/or analyte to the surface for analysis. Moreover, the system integrates a means for grouting the borehole upon retrieval of the penetrometer.