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Nanoscale zerovalent iron-mediated degradation of DDT in soil

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Abstract

Nanoscale zerovalent iron (nZVI)-mediated degradation of 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethane (DDT) was investigated in a spiked soil under different conditions (iron sources, iron dosage, soil moisture, temperature, and soil types) and DDT-contaminated field. The degradation efficiency of p,p′-DDT by nZVI and nZVI coated with sodium oleate (SO-nZVI) was much higher than that by nZVI coated with polyimide (PI-nZVI). The rapid degradation of p,p′-DDT by nZVI only occurred in flooded soil. The degradation half-life of p,p′-DDT decreased significantly from 58.3 to 27.6 h with nZVI dosage from 0.5 to 2.0 % and from 46.5 to 32.0 h with temperature from 15 to 35 °C. The degradation efficiency of p,p′-DDT by nZVI differed in Jinhua (JH), Jiaxing (JX), Xiaoshan (XS), Huajiachi (HJC), and Heilongjiang (HLJ) soils. A good correlation was found between the degradation half-life of p,p′-DDT and multiple soil properties. The probable nZVI-mediated degradation pathway of p,p′-DDT in soil was proposed as DDT → DDD/DDE → DDNS → DDOH based on the metabolites identified by GC-MS. The in situ degradation efficiency of residual DDTs in a contaminated field was profoundly enhanced by the addition of nZVI as compared to the control. It is concluded that nZVI might be an efficient agent for the remediation of DDT-contaminated soil under anaerobic environment.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National High Technology R&D Program of China (No. 2012AA06A204), the Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation (No. LZ13D010001), the Specialized Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education (No. 20120101110073), and the National Nature Science Foundation of China (No. 21477112).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Pesticide and Environmental Toxicology, College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310029, China

    Yuling Han, Nan Shi, Huifang Wang, Xiong Pan, Hua Fang & Yunlong Yu

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  1. Yuling Han
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  2. Nan Shi
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  3. Huifang Wang
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  4. Xiong Pan
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  5. Hua Fang
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  6. Yunlong Yu
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Correspondence to Hua Fang or Yunlong Yu.

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Responsible editor: Santiago V. Luis

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Han, Y., Shi, N., Wang, H. et al. Nanoscale zerovalent iron-mediated degradation of DDT in soil. Environ Sci Pollut Res 23, 6253–6263 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-5850-3

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