Prediction of landfarming period using degradation kinetics of petroleum hydrocarbons: test with artificially contaminated and field-aged soils and commercially available bacterial cultures

• Published in: Journal of soils and sediments Vol. 14; no. 1; pp. 138 - 145
• Main Authors: Jho, Eun Hea, Ryu, Hyerim, Shin, Doyun, Kim, Young-Jin, Choi, Yong Ju, Nam, Kyoungphile
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer-Verlag 2014; Springer Berlin Heidelberg; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Bacteria; Biodegradability; Biodegradation; Chemical treatment; Cultures; Earth and Environmental Science; Environment; Environmental Physics; Hydrocarbons; Kinetics; Korean Peninsula; Land use; Mathematical models; Oxidation; Petroleum; Petroleum hydrocarbons; polluted soils; prediction; Predictions; Removal; Sec 5 • Soil and Landscape Ecology • Research Article; Soil; Soil contamination; Soil microorganisms; Soil Science & Conservation; Soils; Weathering; Korean Peninsula; Landfarming; Soil remediation; Kinetics; Total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs); Bioaugmentation; Fenton oxidation
• ISSN: 1439-0108; 1614-7480
• DOI: 10.1007/s11368-013-0786-z

PURPOSE: This study predicts the optimal landfarming period for the total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs)-contaminated field soils that are subject to the combined landfarming and Fenton oxidation treatment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The TPHs degradation in the artificially contaminated model soils and the field-aged contaminated soils were compared in a laboratory scale. The soils were bioaugmented with the 16 petroleum hydrocarbon-degrading microbial cultures that are commercially available in Korea. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: The TPHs degradation by bioaugmentation in the model soils was 81 ± 2% after 56 days, while it was only 27 ± 2% after 74 days in the field-aged soils. The lower degradation in the field-aged soils can be attributed to the removal of a large part of the biodegradable and volatile TPHs fractions during the weathering process. The two-compartment model that can depict a fast-degradation phase followed by a slow-degradation phase predicted that the remedial goal of 475 mg kg⁻¹ of TPHs could be achieved in the model soils within the conventional landfarming period of 60–120 days in Korea; however, the predicted period for the field-aged soils (710–4,086 days) was not practical requiring a combined biological and chemical treatment approach. Based on the kinetics study, the optimal landfarming period for the field-aged soils was 3 weeks and pre-Fenton oxidation can be used to meet the remedial goal. CONCLUSIONS: The two-compartment model can be useful for predicting landfarming period for the combined landfarming and Fenton oxidation treatment of field-aged TPHs contaminated soils. The prediction of the optimal landfarming period could lead to the reduction in both the treatment cost and period.