Electrokinetically enhanced bioremediation of creosote-contaminated soil: Laboratory and field studies

Abstract

Creosote is a toxic and carcinogenic substance used in wood impregnation. Approximately 1,200 sites in Finland are contaminated with creosote. This study examined the possibility of enhancing bioremediation of creosote-contaminated soil with a combination of electric heating and infiltration and electrokinetic introduction of oxygenated, nutrient-rich liquid. Preliminary tests were performed in the laboratory, and a pilot test was conducted in situ at a creosote-contaminated former wood impregnation plant in Eastern Finland. Wood preservation practices at the plant were discontinued in 1989, but the soil and the groundwater in the area are still highly contaminated. The laboratory tests were mainly performed as a methodological test aiming for upscaling. The soils used in these tests were a highly polluted soil from a marsh next to the impregnation plant and a less polluted soil near the base of the impregnation building. The laboratory test showed that the relative degradation was significantly higher in high initial contaminant concentrations than with low initial concentrations. During the first 7 weeks, PAH-concentrations decreased by 68% in the marsh soil compared with a 51% reduction in the building soil. The field test was performed to a ca. 100 m³ soil section next to the former impregnation building. Nutrient and oxygen levels in the soils were elevated by hydraulic and electrokinetic pumping of urea and phosphate amended, aerated water into the soil. The DC current introduced into the soil raised the temperature from the ambient ca. 6°C up to between 16 and 50°C. Total PAH concentrations decreased by 50–80% during 3 months of treatment while mineral oil concentrations decreased approximately 30%. Electrokinetically enhanced in situ—bioremediation, which also significantly raised the soil temperature, proved to be a promising method to remediate creosote-contaminated soils.

Keywords:

• Creosote
• electrokinetics
• bioremediation
• soil

Acknowledgments

We thank the Finnish Rail Administration and Solidium Ltd. for allowing us to use the test site and for funding the analyses, and Kimmo Järvinen from Ramboll Ltd. for the critical review of the article.

Notes

*PAH and oil concentrations determined in accredited laboratory with standard methods (PAH: GC-MS; oil: GC-FID).