Sorption is a term used in the environmental field to describe how chemical contaminants in soil and groundwater adhere to solid particles such as: clay, peat and activated carbon for the purposes of remediation, fate and transport. A potential surrogate for sorption of chemical contaminants in groundwater is coal fly ash. Batch test experiments have demonstrated coal fly ash\u27s ability to remove hydrophobic, organic petroleum contaminants including: benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes (BTEX) in groundwater through the processes of sorption. Coal fly ash is a byproduct material of coal fired power plants that is often disposed of on-site or at landfills. A beneficial use of coal fly ash is for the sorption of BTEX in groundwater
