Ranking agro-technical methods and environmental parameters in the biodegradation of petroleum-contaminated soils in Nigeria

A combination of experimental cells consisting of some agro-technical methods aimed at accelerating the biodegradation of petroleum contaminated soils were evaluated in order to ascertain the relevance of these methods and the relative attention due necessary soil environmental parameters. The methods of treatment involved the variation of tilling, watering and nutrient application, plus biopile and phytoremediation treatments. In the experiments described, petroleum contamination of soils was simulated under field conditions, the remedial treatments were then utilized for clean up. Analysis of soil parameters after a six-week study period showed an increase in total heterotrophic bacteria (THB) counts across all the treatments, with THB counts increasing with increment in soil nutrient level and initial concentration of the contaminant. The total hydrocarbon content (THC) analysis, based on a performance index introduced in this study, indicated that on the average, the variation of nutrient application, tilling and watering facilitated the attenuation of THC at the rate of 429.4 mg/kg day, 653.2 mg/kg day, and 327.5 mg/kg day respectively. While the combined effect of various levels of nutrients, tiling and watering performed at the rate of 558.7 mg/kg day, biopile and phytoremediation treatments recorded 427.9 mg/kg day and 489.3 mg/kg day respectively. These results imply that though nutrient application, watering and other factors affect the biodegradation process, frequent tilling for maximum oxygen exposure is the most important factor that affects the biodegradation of petroleum-hydrocarbons in tropical soils

Encouraging microbial activity in cementitious systems: An emerging frontier in contaminated soil treatment Encouraging microbial activity in cementitious systems: An emerging frontier in contaminated soil treatment

Abstract Bioremediation is widely accepted as the most effective remediation technology for organic contamination. Nevertheless, it is ineffective for heavy metals, which cannot be degraded, and their immobilisation through pH control achieved with high-pH cementitious materials is one of very few feasible means of treatment available. However, progress is being made in encouraging microbial activity in cementitious systems, which could provide a single technology that is effective and can robustly be used for simultaneous treatment of organic and metallic contaminants in contaminated soils. This work considers efforts in this direction; the successes achieved and the challenges encountered are described. The utility of relatively low-pH magnesium phosphate cement(s) and compost in providing a favourable environment for microbes, as well as the capacity of microbes like Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Rhodococcus ruber immobilised in the cement in degrading organics is highlighted. Overall, the findings are promising and are likely to expand the frontiers of bioremediation and stabilisation/solidification technologies for sustainable treatment of contaminated soils and may be extended to other applicable hazardous waste streams. This is an author-created version of an accepted manuscript (post-print Abstract Bioremediation is widely accepted as the most effective remediation technology for organic contamination. Nevertheless, it is ineffective for heavy metals, which cannot be degraded, and their immobilisation through pH control achieved with high-pH cementitious materials is one of very few feasible means of treatment available. However, progress is being made in encouraging microbial activity in cementitious systems, which could provide a single technology that is effective and can robustly be used for simultaneous treatment of organic and metallic contaminants in contaminated soils. This work considers efforts in this direction; the successes achieved and the challenges encountered are described. The utility of relatively low-pH magnesium phosphate cement(s) and compost in providing a favourable environment for microbes, as well as the capacity of microbes like Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Rhodococcus ruber immobilised in the cement in degrading organics is highlighted. Overall, the findings are promising and are likely to expand the frontiers of bioremediation and stabilisation/solidification 3 technologies for sustainable treatment of contaminated soils and may be extended to other applicable hazardous waste streams

Petroleum contaminated ground-water: Remediation using activated carbon.

Ground-water contamination resulting from the leakage of crude oil and refined petroleum products during extraction and processing operations is a serious and a growing environmental problem in Nigeria. Consequently, a study of the use of activated carbon (AC) in the clean up was undertaken with the aim of reducing the water contamination to a more acceptable level. In the experiments described, crude-oil contamination of ground water was simulated under laboratory conditions using ground-water samples collected from existing hand-dug wells at Eagle Island, Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Different masses of the absorbent (i.e., activated carbon) were then added to the samples of ground water. The so treated water samples were left to equilibrate for 7 days, after which the total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) contents of the samples were measured. Adsorption isotherms were derived for the two forms of activated carbon used, namely granular activated-carbon (GAC) and powdered activated-carbon (PAC). Results of the TPH analyses showed that activated carbon is an excellent means for the stripping-off of the contaminant: there were decreases in contaminant concentration from an initial concentration of 9304.70 mg/l to average final concentrations of 361.00 and 12.37 mg/l, that is, 96% and 99.9% resulting from the same amounts of GAC and PAC applications respectively. The results of this study revealed that the powdered form of AC would be very effective in the remediation of petroleum-hydrocarbon contaminated ground water and its use is therefore recommended

Bioremediation of a crude-oil polluted agricultural-soil at Port Harcourt, Nigeria.

A combination of treatments, consisting of the application of fertilizers and oxygen exposure, was evaluated in situ during a period of six weeks. Conditions of a major spill were simulated by sprinkling crude-oil on experimental cells containing agricultural soil. The remedial treatments were then applied and the soil characteristics analyzed after set periods. Soil physicochemical parameters, such as moisture content, pH value, electrical conductivity as well as organic-carbon and total-nitrogen contents, showed distinct variations with time. The total heterotrophic-bacteria (THB) count in all the treatment cells increased with time. The control cell, O (which was not treated) indicated no signs of remediation within the study period. The hydrocarbon losses (50–95%) experienced in the five other treatment-cells revealed the effectiveness in degrading the hydrocarbon contaminant. The results of this study indicate that the application of increased concentrations of nutrients (by the application of fertilizers) lead to greater rates of biodegradation of petroleum-polluted agricultural soils

Ranking agro-technical methods and environmental parameters in the biodegradation of petroleum-contaminated soils in Nigeria

A combination of experimental cells consisting of some agro-technical methods aimed at accelerating the biodegradation of petroleum contaminated soils were evaluated in order to ascertain the relevance of these methods and the relative attention due necessary soil environmental parameters. The methods of treatment involved the variation of tilling, watering and nutrient application, plus biopile and phytoremediation treatments. In the experiments described, petroleum contamination of soils was simulated under field conditions, the remedial treatments were then utilized for clean up. Analysis of soil parameters after a six-week study period showed an increase in total heterotrophic bacteria (THB) counts across all the treatments, with THB counts increasing with increment in soil nutrient level and initial concentration of the contaminant. The total hydrocarbon content (THC) analysis, based on a performance index introduced in this study, indicated that on the average, the variation of nutrient application, tilling and watering facilitated the attenuation of THC at the rate of 429.4 mg/kg day, 653.2 mg/kg day, and 327.5 mg/kg day respectively. While the combined effect of various levels of nutrients, tiling and watering performed at the rate of 558.7 mg/kg day, biopile and phytoremediation treatments recorded 427.9 mg/kg day and 489.3 mg/kg day respectively. These results imply that though nutrient application, watering and other factors affect the biodegradation process, frequent tilling for maximum oxygen exposure is the most important factor that affects the biodegradation of petroleum-hydrocarbons in tropical soils

Lime-activated one-part geopolymer mortars from construction, demolition and industrial wastes

This work focused on the production of one-part geopolymer mortars from construction and demolition wastes (CDW) blended with steel slag. Previous related studies on geopolymer production from CDW utilized conventional two-part geopolymers comprised of highly alkaline activator solutions and CDW materials. Thus, the study's significance consists in producing high-strength (≥35 MPa) ambient-cured mortars from CDW with predominantly concrete waste by replacing conventional highly alkaline activator solutions with an environmentally-friendly alkaline activator, Ca(OH)2 powder. Four mortar mixtures were produced with CDW contents ranging from 50 to 65 % dry weight, varying the brick waste content from 3 to 18 %. The effect of elevated temperature (40 °C) curing was also considered. The results showed that 55 % CDW content had optimum performance across all parameters studied such as compressive and flexural strengths, setting time, as well as changes in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR)-determined pore structure (porosity and mean pore size) and x-ray diffraction (XRD)-determined degree of crystallinity over time. It had 28-day compressive and flexural strengths of 42 and 5.8 MPa, respectively, and initial and final setting times of 25 and 50 min. The importance of sufficient brick waste content in the geopolymer mixtures for effective mechanical performance is highlighted. The inclusion of concrete waste in powder form reduced compressive strength under ambient curing but improved performance at 40 °C curing. It is concluded that sustainable structural mortars can be produced by ‘just adding water’ to an optimized CDW mixture with predominantly concrete waste blended with brick waste and slag and activated by powdered Ca(OH)2

Development of Ca(OH)2-based geopolymer for additive manufacturing using construction wastes and nanomaterials

Recent growth in additive manufacturing (AM) or 3D printing in the construction field has motivated the development of various materials that vary in its composition and properties. This paper introduces, characterizes, and evaluates the performance of a sustainable and environmentally friendly geopolymer mixture composed of construction wastes. The geopolymer mixture has calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2) as the main alkaline activator and incorporates nanomaterials such as nano-silica and nano-clay to enhance its suitability for AM. The combined use of Ca(OH)2 for alkali activation, and nanomaterials for tailoring the behavior of construction wastes for 3D printing, is novel and addresses the shortcomings of conventional alkaline activators. The paper includes the outcomes of the analysis of the mechanical properties, printability, and microstructure of the geopolymer mixture. The 28-day compressive strength of the mixture reached 42 MPa with ambient temperature curing, which is comparable to traditional geopolymers. The inclusion of 1 wt % of nano-silica accelerated the geopolymerization process and led to the largest (35 %) reduction in the setting time. Similarly, incorporating 1 wt % of nano-clay led to reduction of the thermal conductivity from 0.709 W/mK to 0.505 W/mK, due to the introduction of thermal barriers. The printability of the studied waste-based geopolymer mixture was validated through the successful fabrication of a 3D-printed model