Measurement of electrical properties of contaminated soil¹

We present the measured dielectric constant and conductivity of soil samples contaminated by diesel oil. Measurements of the electrical properties of contaminated soil were carried out using a guarded‐electrode sample holder and a parallel‐plate sample holder in the frequency range 2–250 MHz. Two different soil samples were measured. Both the dielectric constant and the conductivity of the contaminated soils and uncontaminated soils are compared. The measurement results show that the change in the dielectric constant of soils before and after diesel oil contamination is small but significant. These results provide a basis for using ground‐penetrating radar or other high‐frequency electromagnetic sensors in the detection of soil contamination.