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Removal of high concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from contaminated soil by biodiesel

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Abstract

Solubilizing experiments were carried out to evaluate the ability of biodiesel to remove polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from highly contaminated manufactured gas plant (MGP) and PAHs spiked soils with hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HPCD) and tween 80 as comparisons. Biodiesel displayed the highest solubilities of phenanthrene (420.7 mg·L−1), pyrene (541.0 mg·L−1), and benzo(a)pyrene (436.3 mg·L−1). These corresponded to several fold increases relative to 10% HPCD and tween 80. Biodiesel showed a good efficiency for PAH removal from the spiked and MGP soils for both low molecular weight and high molecular weight PAHs at high concentrations. Biodiesel was the best agent for PAH removal from the spiked soils as compared with HPCD and tween 80; as over 77.9% of individual PAH were removed by biodiesel. Tween 80 also showed comparable capability with biodiesel for PAH solubilization at a concentration of 10% for the spiked soils. Biodiesel solubilized a wider range of PAHs as compared to HPCD and tween 80 for the MPG soils. At PAH concentrations of 229.6 and 996.9 mg·kg−1, biodiesel showed obvious advantage over the 10% HPCD and tween 80, because it removed higher than 80% of total PAH. In this study, a significant difference between PAH removals from the spiked and field MGP soils was observed; PAH removals from the MGP soil by HPCD and tween 80 were much lower than those from the spiked soil. These results demonstrate that the potential for utilizing biodiesel for remediation of highly PAH-contaminated soil has been established.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Pollution Ecology and Environmental Engineering, Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, 110016, China

    Jinbao Wu, Zongqiang Gong, Xiaojun Li & Peijun Li

  2. Shenyang University of Chemical Technology, Shenyang, 110142, China

    Jinbao Wu

  3. Soil and Environment College, Shenyang Agriculture University, Shenyang, 110161, China

    Jinbao Wu & Yanli Yi

  4. No. 202 Hospital of PLA, Shenyang, China

    Liyan Zheng

  5. Environmental Protection Research Institute of Light Industry, Beijing, 100089, China

    Jinghua Jin

Authors
  1. Jinbao Wu
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  2. Zongqiang Gong
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  3. Liyan Zheng
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  4. Yanli Yi
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  5. Jinghua Jin
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  6. Xiaojun Li
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Correspondence to Peijun Li.

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Wu, J., Gong, Z., Zheng, L. et al. Removal of high concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from contaminated soil by biodiesel. Front. Environ. Sci. Eng. China 4, 387–394 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-010-0269-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-010-0269-z

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