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. 2022 Jan;29(5):7639-7651.
doi: 10.1007/s11356-021-15876-1. Epub 2021 Sep 3.

Guidelines for surfactant selection to treat petroleum hydrocarbon-contaminated soils

Emilio Ritoré  1 , Bruno Coquelet  2 , Carmen Arnaiz  3 , José Morillo  3 , José Usero  3
Affiliations

Guidelines for surfactant selection to treat petroleum hydrocarbon-contaminated soils

Emilio Ritoré et al. Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2022 Jan.

Abstract

The present study determined the most effective surfactants to remediate gasoline and diesel-contaminated soil integrating information from soil texture and soil organic matter. Different ranges for aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons (> C6-C8, > C8-C10, > C10-C12, > C12-C16, > C16-C21, and > C21-C35) in gasoline and diesel fuel were analyzed. This type of analysis has been investigated infrequently. Three types of soils (silty clay, silt loam, and loamy sand) and four surfactants (non-ionic: Brij 35 and Tween 80; anionic: SDBS and SDS) were used. The results indicated that the largest hydrocarbon desorption was 56% for silty clay soil (SDS), 59% for silt loam soil (SDBS), and 69% for loamy sand soil (SDS). Soils with large amounts of small particles showed the worst desorption efficiencies. Anionic surfactants removed more hydrocarbons than non-ionic surfactants. It was notable that preferential desorption on different hydrocarbon ranges was observed since aliphatic hydrocarbons and large ranges were the most recalcitrant compounds of gasoline and diesel fuel components. Unlike soil texture, natural organic matter concentration caused minor changes in the hydrocarbon removal rates. Based on these results, this study might be useful as a tool to select the most cost-effective surfactant knowing the soil texture and the size and chemical structure of the hydrocarbons present in a contaminated site.

Keywords: Aliphatic hydrocarbon; Aromatic hydrocarbon; Petroleum-contaminated soil; Soil organic matter; Soil remediation; Soil texture; Surfactant.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Desorption efficiencies of surfactants for petroleum hydrocarbons adsorbed by different soils. PR = La Puebla del Río (silty clay), LM = Los Marines (silt loam), AL = Almonte (loamy sand)
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Desorption rates for hydrocarbon ranges in the three tested soils. a La Puebla del Rio soil, b Los Marines soil, and c Almonte soil
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
a–l Desorption efficiencies for different hydrocarbon fractions
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Influence of soil organic matter on the total petroleum hydrocarbons (> C6–C35) removal rate
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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