Agricultural Soil Remediation Contaminated with Hydrocarbons Applying a Coupled Sorption/Oxidation Treatment and Biosolid as Enricher

Soil contamination caused by petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) from clandestine intakes along the distribution pipelines is a growing problem in Mexico. After the application of physical/chemical treatments in contaminated soils, the use of biosolids can help to recover soil’s biological properties and overcome macronutrient scarcity. In this work, a coupled sorption/advanced oxidation process using activated carbon and potassium persulfate was applied in a soil with an initial TPH concentration of 81,403 mg/kg. Once treated, bioassays with Raphanus sativus were carried out using varying concentrations of biosolids to evaluate the changes in soil fertility and crop development. The pairing of sorption, advanced oxidation, and biosolid application resulted in a treatment with a TPH reduction of 50%. The results demonstrate that the addition of biosolid improves soil fertility. Also, it was found that the TPH migrated from the soil to the roots and leaves of R. sativus, such translocation of the contaminant was studied through computational fluid dynamics. The obtained results show the possibility of bioaccumulation of TPH in food crops grown in the area