Underground Storage Tanks

These resources provide information on the assessment, characterization, and analysis of MTBE and MTBE releases. For more MTBE topics, return to the MTBE main page.

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• A Simple Gas Chromatographic Method for the Analysis of Oxygenates in Gasoline 1995.
  Published in Chromatographia, this paper presents the research results related to the use of a packed column gas chromatographic method in the analysis of C1C4 alcohols, MTBE, and TAME in gasoline.
• Analytical Issues for MTBE and Related Oxygenate Compounds (PDF) (3 pp, 181K, About PDF) Undated.
  Published in L.U.S.T. Line, a technical newsletter for underground storage tank (UST) stakeholders, this article presents analytical methods for MTBE and related analytes for state and federal LUST programs.
• Analytical Methodologies for Fuel Oxygenates (PDF) (2 pp, 18K, About PDF) 2003. EPA 510-F-03-001.
  Prepared by EPA's Office of Underground Storage Tanks, this fact sheet provides information for state and federal regulators, laboratory analysts, consultants, and contractors on validated analytical methods for common fuel oxygenates.
• Analytical Methods for Fuel Oxygenates (PDF) (8 pp, 474K, About PDF) 2002.
  Published in L.U.S.T. Line, a technical newsletter for underground storage tank stakeholders, this article discusses issues relevant to the analysis of fuel oxygenates.
• Dual Capillary Gas-Chromatographic Analysis of Alcohols and Methyl Tert-Butyl Ether in Gasolines
  Published in the Journal of High Resolution Chromatography, this paper describes a gas chromatographic method developed for the identification and direct determination of alcohols and MTBE in gasoline.
• Enrichment of Stable Carbon and Hydrogen Isotopes during Anaerobic Biodegradation of MTBE: Microcosm and Field Evidence 2005.
  Published in Environmental Science & Technology, this paper presents research on the use of compound-specific stable isotope analysis as a useful alternative to conventional practice in the evaluation of biodegradation of organic contaminants in ground water.
• Evaluation of Standard Methods for the Analysis of Methyl tert-Butyl Ether and Related Oxygenates in Gasoline-Contaminated Groundwater 2001.
  This paper, published in Environmental Science & Technology, presents testing results for three purge-and-trap gas chromatography methods commonly employed for the monitoring of oxygenate compounds in ground water at leaking underground storage tank sites.
• GC/MS Analysis of MTBE, ETBE, and TAME in Gasolines 1994.
  Published in Analytical Chemistry, this paper presents the results of research on the analysis of MTBE, ETBE, and TAME in gasoline.
• Guidelines for Investigation and Cleanup of MTBE and Other Ether-Based Oxygenates (PDF) (20 pp, 72K, About PDF) 2000.
  Prepared by California's State Water Resource Control Board, this document provides guidance to California regulatory agencies on overseeing the investigation and cleanup of sites with MTBE contamination.
• Laboratory Method for Analysis of Small Concentrations of Methyl Tert-Butyl Ether and Other Ether Gasoline Oxygenates in Water 1998.
  Prepared by the U.S. Geological Survey, this fact sheet presents a method using purge-and-trap capillary-column gas chromatography/mass spectrometry for the analysis of nanogram-per-liter concentrations of MTBE, TAME, DIPE, and ETBE.
• Method for Determination of Methyl tert-Butyl Ether and Its Degradation Products in Water 1997.
  This paper, published in Environmental Science & Technology, presents the results of research on methods for determining MTBE and its degradation products in ground water.
• MTBE: Effects on Soil and Groundwater Resources 2000.
  This book provides in-depth information on MTBE, including assessment and potential remediation strategies, history and overview, physical and chemical properties, and toxicity and health effects.
• New API Report on Characterizing Releases with MTBE Provides Useful Technical Information But Overlooks Important Regulatory Considerations (PDF) (2 pp, 153K, About PDF) Undated.
  Published in L.U.S.T. Line, a technical newsletter for UST stakeholders, this article reviews a report by the American Petroleum Institute on characterizing MTBE releases.
  • Strategies for Characterizing Subsurface Releases of Gasoline Containing MTBE 2000.
    
• Sleuthing MTBE with Statistical Data 1999.
  This Web page, prepared by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, provides details on MTBE-related research underway at the facility.
• Technical Protocol for Evaluating the Natural Attenuation of MtBE (PDF) (186 pp, 2.9 MB, About PDF) 2007.
  Prepared by the American Petroleum Institute, this protocol addresses data collection, evaluation, and interpretation procedures that consider the physical, chemical and biological properties of MTBE and other oxygenates and degradation byproducts.
• U.S. Geological Survey Method for Methyl tert-Butyl Ether and Other Fuel Oxygenates 1995.
  This U.S. Geological Survey document provides information on a method for determining MTBE and other oxygenates in whole water.
• Upgraded UST Release Site Evaluation Case Studies (UST Team 2 Report) (PDF) (44 pp, 143K, About PDF) 1992.
  This UST Team 2 report presents the results of an evaluation of upgraded UST sites where MTBE was present in the subsurface, in order to determine site-specific factors resulting in a release of MTBE.
  • Appendix II (Site Information) (PDF) (10 pp, 20K, About PDF) 1992.
    
• Use of Compound-Specific Stable Carbon Isotope Analyses to Demonstrate Anaerobic Biodegradation of MTBE in Groundwater at Gasoline Release Site 2002.
  Published in Environmental Science & Technology, this paper presents the results of a study exploring the use of compound-specific stable carbon isotope analyses to distinguish MTBE biodegradation from other biotic processes in an anaerobic ground water plume.
• Using Direct Push Tools to Map Hydrostratigraphy and Predict MTBE Plume Diving (PDF) (10 pp, 1.0MB, About PDF) 2005.
  Published in Ground Water Monitoring & Remediation, this report presents the results of a study in which techniques to predict the vertical extent of MTBE in an aquifer were evaluated at a diving plume of MTBE in East Alton, Illinois.
• Using the Gasoline Additive MTBE in Forensic Environmental Investigations 2000.
  Published in Environmental Forensics, this paper examines the potential for use of MTBE in forensic environmental investigations and reviews an example application to demonstrate this use.

Models

• A Screening Approach to Simulation of Aquifer Contamination by Fuel Hydrocarbons (BTEX and MTBE) Undated.
  This EPA report presents information from case studies and describes a simplified model for exposure assessment.
• Modeling Subsurface Contamination by Petroleum Hydrocarbons Undated.
  EPA's Office of Research and Development has provided this interactive training course which focuses on fuel releases that result in benzene, toluene, ethylbenenze, xylenes (BTEX), and MTBE contamination of aquifers.
• New Jersey DEP's Advection/Dispersion model for MTBE and TBA (Zip) (1.7 MB, Downloadable ZIP File Format) Undated.
  This advection/dispersion model was created by New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection.
• OnSite Calculator Undated.
  EPA's Ecosystems Research Division provides a set of online calculators for estimating transport parameters from field data, running simple models, and performing unit conversions. The intent is to provide aids for planning site assessments or in reviewing modeling reports. The calculators include estimates of hydraulic gradients, the retardation factor, temperature-dependent Henry's Law constants, effective solubilities from fuels, estimated longitudinal dispersivity, and transport calculations from pulse or fuel sources. Sample applications show how to use the suite of calculators for site assessment and report review.
• Simulating Transport of Volatile Organic Compounds in the Unsaturated Zone Using the Computer Model R-UNSAT 1998.
  The U.S. Geological Survey prepared this Web page, which provides information on modeling of VOC transport in the environment.
• The Hydrocarbon Spill Screening Model (HSSM) Undated.
  This simplified model for subsurface releases of fuel hydrocarbons was produced by EPA to address releases from USTs. The model tracks the flow of the water-immiscible fuel, simulates the dissolution of various chemicals (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, xylenes, or MTBE) into groundwater, and tracks the transport of contaminants to receptors in aquifers.

Non-Electronic Resources

• Pirkle, R.J. and P.W. McLoughlin. The Analysis of Selected Components of Reformulated Gasoline in Environmental Samples. Soil Sediments & Groundwater. July/August 2002.
• Small, M.C., and J. Weaver. An Updated Conceptual Model for Subsurface Fate and Transport of MTBE and Benzene. 1999. Proceedings of the 2000 Petroleum Hydrocarbons and Organic Chemicals in Ground Water: Prevention, Detection, and Remediation, Conference and Exposition, November 17-19, Houston, Texas, pages 209-220.
• Uhler, A., S. Stout, R. Uhler, and K. McCarthy. 2000. Considerations for the Accurate Chemical Analysis of MTBE and Other Gasoline Oxygenates. Soil Sediments & Groundwater. MTBE Special Issue. pages 70-72.
• Wade, M.J. 1998. Acidification of Groundwater Samples for Sample Preservation and its Effect on Determined Methyl t-Butyl Ether Concentration. Division of Environmental Chemistry Preprints of Extended Abstracts, Vol. 38, no. 2, pages 246-248.

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