Guide box assembly system for in-ground barrier installation

Abstract

A hazardous waste containment system for preventing the lateral migration of hazardous fluid substances (including both liquid and gas wastes) into the water table, particularly for sites which are located over a fluid impermeable strata of clay (20) or the like. The system uses an encircling (FIG. 8) barrier containment wall (W) comprising a plurality of slidingly engaged, interlocked, vertical barrier members (501/101) which extend down to and sealingly interface with the underlying fluid impermeable strata (20). The barrier members are slidingly engaged via interlocking male and female appendages, which mate and form vertically extended, interlocking, sealed joints, in which fluid impermeable seals (508/108) are formed. An installation method for assembling the barrier members in the ground uses a series of guide box assemblies (1-3+), which can be easily assembled and disassembled and which are placed in the excavation fully assembled with its exterior walls spaced from the side walls of the excavation, using their interiors to create a 'clean,' dirt-free, temporary, isolated work space for the insertion and interconnection of the barrier members. The method further includes the utilization of a sealant (25) at the base of the containment wall to prevent leaching under it (FIG. 9). The system may be used to contain a variety of materials and may be implemented in various soil conditions with similarly successful results. Two exemplary guide box assembly embodiments (FIGS. 1 & 10-13), the latter of which includes a pair of end, winged, base spreader bars (174/175), and two exemplary barrier member embodiments (FIGS. 5 & 10), double-wall and single wall, respectively, are disclosed.