Abstract
The most common approaches for the in-situ bioremediation of contaminated sites worldwide are bioaugmentation and bio stimulation. Bio stimulation has often proved more effective for chronically contaminated sites. This study examined the effectiveness of optimized water hyacinth compost in comparison with other organic and inorganic amendments for the remediation of crude oil-polluted soils. Water hyacinth was found to be rich in nutrients necessary to stimulate microbial growth and activity. an organic geochemical analysis revealed that all amendments in this study increased total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) biodegradation by ≥75% within 56 days, with the greatest biodegradation (93%) occurring in sterilized soil inoculated with optimized water hyacinth compost. This was followed by polluted soil amended with a combination of spent mushroom and water hyacinth composts (SMC + WH), which recorded a TPH biodegradation of 89%. Soil amendment using the inorganic fertilizer NPK (20:10:10) resulted in 86% TPH biodegradation. on the other hand, control samples (natural attenuation) recorded only 4% degradation. a molecular analysis of residual polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) showed that the 16 PAHs designated by the US EPA as priority pollutants were either completely or highly degraded in the combined treatment (SMC + WH), indicating the potential of this amendment for the environmental remediation of soils contaminated with recalcitrant organic pollutants.
Recommended Citation
O. A. Udume et al., "Biostimulation of Petroleum-Contaminated Soil using Organic and Inorganic Amendments," Plants, vol. 12, no. 3, article no. 431, MDPI, Feb 2023.
The definitive version is available at https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12030431
Department(s)
Chemistry
Publication Status
Open Access
Keywords and Phrases
bioremediation; biostimulation; NPK fertilizer; priority PAHs; spent mushroom compost; TPH; water hyacinth compost
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
2223-7747
Document Type
Article - Journal
Document Version
Final Version
File Type
text
Language(s)
English
Rights
© 2025 The Authors, All rights reserved.
Creative Commons Licensing
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Publication Date
01 Feb 2023
Comments
Tertiary Education Trust Fund, Grant NRF/SETI/NRT/00031