Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
9465175 | Waste Management | 2005 | 9 Pages |
Abstract
The biodegradation of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), listed as priority pollutants by the USEPA, present in a coal-tar-contaminated soil from a former manufactured gas plant site was investigated using laboratory-scale in-vessel composting reactors to determine the suitability of this approach as a bioremediation technology. Preliminary investigations were conducted over 16 weeks to determine the optimum soil composting temperature (38, 55 and 70 °C). Three tests were performed; firstly, soil was composted with green-waste, with a moisture content of 60%. Secondly, microbial activity was HgCl2-inhibited in the soil green-waste mixture with a moisture content of 60%, to evaluate abiotic losses, while in the third experiment only soil was incubated at the three different temperatures. PAHs and microbial populations were monitored. PAHs were lost from all treatments with 38 °C being the optimum temperature for both PAH removal and microbial activity. Calculated activation energy values (Ea) for total PAHs suggested that the main loss mechanism in the soil-green waste reactors was biological, whereas in the soil reactors it was chemical. Total PAH losses in the soil-green waste composting mixtures were by pseudo-first order kinetics at 38 °C (k = 0.013 dayâ1, R2 = 0.95), 55 °C (k = 0.010 dayâ1, R2 = 0.76) and at 70 °C (k = 0.009 dayâ1, R2 = 0.73).
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Earth and Planetary Sciences
Geotechnical Engineering and Engineering Geology
Authors
Blanca Antizar-Ladislao, Joseph Lopez-Real, Angus J. Beck,