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Microbial degradation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons under denitrification conditions in soil-water suspensions: Final report

Technical Report ·
DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/5870632· OSTI ID:5870632

The microbial degradation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) under different redox conditions was examined for soil-water suspensions, with particular emphasis on microbial degradation under denitrification conditions. Batch microbial degradation tests of naphthol, naphthalene, and acenaphthene with 1 gram of soil per 50-ml aqueous phase were conducted under aerobic and anaerobic conditions. A conceptual model was proposed to describe the aqueous-phase concentration of PAH solute under denitrification conditions for soil-water systems maintained under gentle suspension. The approach combined an intra-aggregate radial diffusion model to represent solute sorption and desorption with soil, with either Monod or first-order kinetics to describe the microbial degradation of solute from the bulk-aqueous phase. The microbial degradation of naphthalene in soil-water suspensions under denitrification conditions was modeled by the coupled desorption-degradation approach in order to evaluate unexplored situations in which soil particle size may affect the rate of microbial degradation. A preliminary assessment of the effect of solute hydrophobicity on microbial degradation was modeled for volumetric mean particle radii in the range of 0.01 to 0.1 cm. The coupled desorption-degradation model and first-order aerobic degradation kinetic information from the literature used to predict the aqueous- and sorbed-phase concentrations for the solutes naphthalene, anthracene, and benzo(a)pyrene. 43 refs., 53 figs., 10 tabs.

Research Organization:
Carnegie-Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA (USA). Dept. of Civil Engineering
DOE Contract Number:
AC21-84FC10619
OSTI ID:
5870632
Report Number(s):
DOE/FC/10619-2724; ON: DE89011690
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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