title: Effect of activated carbon and biochars on the bioavailability of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in different industrially contaminated soils.
abstract: Coal production negatively affects the environment by the emission of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Two soils (KOK and KB) from a coking plant area was investigated and their total PAH concentration was 40 and 17 mg/kg for the sum (∑) 16 US EPA PAHs, respectively. A third soil was sampled from a bitumen plant area and was characterized by 9 mg/kg ∑16 US EPA PAHs. To reduce the freely dissolved concentration (Cfree) of the PAHs in the soil pore water, active carbon (AC) and two biochars pyrolysed from wheat straw (biochar-S) and willow (biochar-W) were added to the soils at 0.5-5 % (w/w), each. The AC performed best and reduced the Cfree by 51-98 % already at the lowest dose. The biochars needed doses up to 2.5 % to significantly reduce the Cfree by 44-86 % in the biochar-S and by 37-68 % in the biochar-W amended soils. The high black carbon (BC) content of up to 2.3 % in the Silesian soils competed with the sorption sites of the carbon amendments and the performance of the remediation was a consequence of the contaminant's source and the distribution between the BC and the AC/biochars. In contrast, the carbon amendment could best reduce the Cfree in the Lublin soil where the BC content was normal (0.05 %). It is therefore crucial to know the contaminant's source and history of a sample/site to choose the appropriate carbon amendment not only for remediation success but also for economic reasons.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Maria Curie-Skłodowska, pl. M. Curie-Skłodowskiej 3, 20-031, Lublin, Poland.
authors.forename: Michał
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kołtowski
authors.affiliation: Agroscope ISS, Reckenholzstrasse 191, 8046, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Isabel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Hilber
authors.affiliation: Agroscope ISS, Reckenholzstrasse 191, 8046, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Thomas D
authors.initials: TD
authors.lastname: Bucheli
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, University of Maria Curie-Skłodowska, pl. M. Curie-Skłodowskiej 3, 20-031, Lublin, Poland. patryk.oleszczuk@poczta.umcs.lublin.pl.
authors.forename: Patryk
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Oleszczuk
mesh_terms: D001682:Biological Availability; D002244:Carbon; D002606:Charcoal; D007221:Industry; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / Q000032:analysis*; D032108:Salix; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry*; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D053260:Soot; D014908:Triticum
chemical_list: D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons; D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants; D053260:Soot; C540010:biochar; D002606:Charcoal; D002244:Carbon
keywords: Activated carbon; Bioavailability; Biochar; PAHs; Soil organic carbon; Soil remediation