| Use: | Usually used where soil conditions are unfavorable for use of conventional thin-wall samplers. |
Description:
Piston samplers are similar to thin-walled samplers except they are equipped with internal pistons to generate a vacuum within the sampler as it is withdrawn from the soil. A wide variety of specialized thin-wall and piston samplers have been developed for collecting undisturbed samples where specific soil conditions are unfavorable for use of conventional thin-wall or piston samplers.
Thin-Wall Piston Samplers
| Internal sleeve piston: | Heaving sands (used with hollow-stem auger). |
| Wireline piston: | Cohesive soils and non-cohesive sands (used with hollow-stem auger). |
| Fixed-piston: | Cohesive soils, silts, and sand above or below water table. |
| Stationary piston: | Undisturbed samples in stiff cohesive soils; representative samples in medium to soft cohesive soils, silts, and sands. |
| Free piston: | Undisturbed samples in stiff cohesive soils; representative samples in medium to soft cohesive soils, silts, and sands. |
| Open drive: | Undisturbed samples in stiff cohesive soils; representative samples in medium to soft cohesive soils, silts, and sands. |
Specialized Thin-Wall Samplers
| Pitcher: | Undisturbed samples in hard cohesive soils and cemented sands; representative samples in soft to medium cohesive soils, silts, and sands. Frequently ineffective on cohesionless soils. |
| Denison: | Undisturbed samples in hard cohesive soils, cemented sands, and soft rocks. Not suitable for undisturbed sampling of cohesionless or soft cohesive soils. |
| Vicksburg: | Similar to Shelby tube (see Section 4.2.3) but able to sample denser, coarser material. |
Analytes:
| 1. Non-Halogenated VOCs | 5. PAHs | 9. Inorganics |
| 2. Non-Halogenated SVOCs | 6. Pesticides/Herbicides | 10. Explosives |
| 3. Halogenated VOCs | 7. Metals | 11. TPHs |
| 4. Halogenated SVOCs | 8. Radionuclides |
Media:
| Soil: | Ground Water: | Surface Water: | Gas/Air: |
| MINIMUM | Not Applicable | Not Applicable | Not Applicable |
| Maximum Depth: | Up to 25 feet. Can be used up to 25 feet beyond an existing access hole to achieve greater depth below the soil surface. |
| Production Rate: | Sample is available quickly. |
| Investigation Derived Waste Volume: | Small volume of waste. |
| Technology Status: | Commercially available and routinely used field technology. |
| Certification/Verification: | Technology has not participated in CalEPA certification and/or CSCT verification program. |
| Relative Cost per Sample: | Mid-range expense. |
Limitations:
ASTM Standards:
| D 2937 - 94 | Density of Soil in Place by the Drive-Cylinder Method. |
| D 4700 - 91 | Soil Sampling from the Vadose Zone. |
| D 6169 | Guide for Selection of Soil and Rock Sampling Devices with Drill Rigs for Environmental Investigations. |
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