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Interactions Between BTEX, TPH, and TCE During Their bio-removal from the Artificially Contaminated Water

Authors:
Yiqin Chen
Junhui Li
Chengkeng Lei
Shim Hojae

Keywords: BTEX; interaction; mixture; pH; TCE; TPH

Abstract:
Many environmental sites are becoming contaminated by mixed wastes, including such organic compounds as BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and three isomers of xylene), TPH (total petroleum hydrocarbons), and CAHs (chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbons) including TCE (trichloroethylene). TCE, as a representative CAH, has been widely used in various industrial processes and is among the most prevalent hazardous organic compounds present in the environment. In this study, a microbial pure culture enriched and isolated from a heavily oil-contaminated site in Xiamen, China, was used to remove mixtures of BTEX, TPH, and TCE under different pHs (5, 7, and 9) at 25°C, from the artificially contaminated water and to assess the interactions between those compounds during their bio-removal. The mixtures of BTEX (BTEoX, BTEmX, and BTEpX) and TPH showed different trends when TCE added to the mixture. TCE showed an inhibitory effect on bio-removal of o-xylene in BTEoX mixture, while it showed a stimulatory effect on the overall removal efficiencies for BTEmX and BTEpX mixtures. On the other hand, TCE was the most efficiently removed when mixed with BTEoX and TPH, except at pH 5, while less removed in other mixtures at almost similar amounts, regardless of pH. The highest removal of BTEX and TPH occurred at pH 7 or 9, while the highest removal of TCE occurred at pH 7, regardless of mixtures.

Pages: 33 to 37

Copyright: Copyright (c) IARIA, 2011

Publication date: May 22, 2011

Published in: conference

ISSN: 2308-4154

ISBN: 978-1-61208-138-0

Location: Venice/Mestre, Italy

Dates: from May 22, 2011 to May 27, 2011