Abstract
A study, aimed at characterizing the nature of anthropogenic and biogenic hydrocarbon contamination in the groundwater of Kuwait, was carried out using fluorescence spectroscopy and other analytical techniques. The results of these analyses have demonstrated that the groundwater in certain areas of northern Kuwait has been significantly impacted by contamination originating from the oil-contaminated surface soils. The study revealed that a water-soluble fraction (WSF) of the crude oil surface contamination appeared to be slowly leaching into the freshwater lenses located in the area. The study also showed that hydrocarbon pollutants were practically absent in the brackish water areas of central and southern Kuwait, except for a few isolated sites. However, nonpetroleum hydrocarbons, with ultraviolet-visible absorption characteristics and fluorescence characteristics typically associated with humic substances, were observed at a few sites in the brackish water fields.
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Acknowledgments
The financial grants from the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) of Kuwait and the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS) made the study possible. The Groundwater Production Department of the Ministry of Electricity and Water (MEW), Kuwait, provided field support in the collection of the water samples. Mr. Habib Al-Qallaf, Mr. Tariq Rashid and Mr. Bandar Al-Salman carried out the field sampling. Mr. Harish Bhandary and Ms. Fatma Al-Marzouk carried out the laboratory analyses. The Central Analytical Laboratory and the Advanced System Department assisted in the GC, HPLC and fluorescence fingerprinting analyses. The expert advice from Dr. Peter Literathy, Senior Advisor, Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR) is very much appreciated. The managements of EPA and KISR are gratefully acknowledged for granting permission for the publication of the paper (Publication No. KISR8734).
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Al-Awadi, E., Quinn, M., Mukhopadhyay, A. et al. Extent and nature of hydrocarbon occurrence in the groundwater of Kuwait. Environ Geol 56, 877–889 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00254-008-1188-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00254-008-1188-1