Bioremediation of total petroleum hydrocarbons in crude oil contaminated soils obtained from southeast Anatolia

Senem ÜSTÜN KURNAZ, Hanife BÜYÜKGÜNGÖR

Abstract

Oil spills are one of the most common types of soil pollution. Bioremediation is an attractive alternative method to physico-chemical remediation. It is well-known that bacteria and fungi are the principal petroleum degrading organisms. Hence, this study investigates the use of fungus Aspergillus niger to remove TPH (Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons) from soil polluted with crude oil obtained from Southeast Anatolia of Turkey, and accordingly the biodegradable of TPH in soil by A. niger biomass was investigated. The amount of TPH was measured before and after A. niger application. For this purpose, the biodegradation of TPH was applied to three different soil media, including (I) contain only A. niger in sterilized soil, (II) soil microorganisms - A. niger, and (III) only soil microorganisms. The experiment was conducted at 30°C for 30, 65 and 96 days without pH modification (original pH was 5.0). At the beginning and end of the experimental periods, the samples of soil were taken from the media and analyzed in accordance to the EPA analytic techniques. The result showed that removal of TPH in the soil using fungus A. niger was rather achieved in the above incubation periods. The best results were achieved for the medium (I) with the reduction of TPH, from the initial value of 48.300 ppm to 44.630, 39.430 and 33.600 ppm within 30, 65 and 96 days, respectively.

Keywords

Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons (TPH), Aspergillus niger, Bioremedaiton, Contaminated soil.

Full Text:

PDF

References

Balba T. 2003. Bioremediation of oil-contaminated sites, case studies involving light and heavy petroleum hydrocarbons. Rem Tech 2003.

Buyukgungor H., Gurel L. 2009. The role of biotechnology on the treatment of wastes. African Journal of Biotechnology, 8(25): 7253-7262.

Ekperusi O.A., Aigbodion F.I. 2015. Bioremediation of petroleum hydrocarbons from crude oil contaminated soil with the earthworm, Hyperiodrilus africanus. 3 Biotech, 957-965

EPA. 2016. EPA analytical techniques (EPA Method 418.1) available from: http://www3.epa.gov.

Faryal R., Ahmed S., Hameed A. 2006. Biodegredation of 4-aminobenzene Sulphonic Acid by a local textile mill Aspergillus niger isolate. Pakistan Journal of Botany, 38(4): 1333-1340.

Gheju M. 2011. Kinetics of hexavalent chromium removal with scrap iron in continuous-flow system. Chemical Bulletin of Politehnica, 56(70): 1, 2011.

Lemos J.L.S., Rizzo A.C., Millioli V.S., Soriano A.U., Sarquis M.I.M., Santos R. 2002a. Petroleum degradation by fılamentous fungi, 9nt Annual International Petroleum Environmental Conference, October 22-25, Albuquerque, NM.

Lemos J.L.S., Rizzo A.C., Millioli V.S., Santos R., Berbert V.H., Veltri P., Soriano A.U. 2002b. Fungi and the bioremediation of petroleum contaminated soil, CETEM, Centro de Tecnologica Mineral, July 22-August 3, Rio de IARC Janeiro, Brasil.

Romanus A.A., Omolola E.A., Patrick A.S., Ifeoma O.G. 2015. Bacterial degradation of petroleum hydrocarbons in crude oil polluted soil amended with cassava peels. American Journal of Research Communication, 3(7): 99-118.

Schaefer M., Petersen S.O., Filser J. 2005. Effects of Lumbricus terrestris, Allolobophora chlorotica and Eisenia fetida on microbial community dynamics in oil-contaminated soil, Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 37(11): 2065-2076.

Semple K.T., Reid B.J., Fermor T.R. 2001. Impact of composting strategies on the treatment of soils contaminated with organic pollutants. Environmental Pollution, 112: 269-283.

Yang S.Z., Jin H.J., Wei Z., He R.X., Ji Y.J., Li X.M. 2009. Bioremediation of oil spills in cold environments: A Review. Pedosphere, 19: 371-381.

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.