Scholarly record
PLANT BIO-MONITORING OF ORGANIC SOLVENTS IN GROUNDWATER
Abstract
Leakages from underground storage tanks and accidental spills have led to contamination of soils and groundwater with organic solvents. Bio-monitoring (phyto- monitoring) uses plant tissue concentrations of organic pollutants in deep-rooted species of trees for low-cost assessment of the groundwater concentrations. Disadvantages of this approach include the limite d number of said tree species in the contaminated area, and the limited number of core samples that can be taken from a single tree before it dies. A solution to this problem was investigated in this study through the use of passive samplers based on Parafilm M with benzene and trichloroethylene as model solvent contaminants. The benzene concentrations in the wood peaked at 14 ng/g for Dalbergia Sisso. For trichloroethylene in the same tree species, the concentration decreased from the bark into the trunk with a maximum value of 2041 ng/g. In Ficus spp. , the concentration of benzene was independent of the depth in the trunk with one exception. This was a lack of benzene detection between 10 and 15 cm into the trunk. Concentrations of trichloroethylene peaked between 460 and 662 ng/g and they were observed 5 to 15 cm into the trunk, depending on the species sampled. The amounts of solvents accumulated in the Parafilm M passive sampler corresponded to the wood and groundwater concentrations; and thus indicate the possible applicability of the proposed passive sampler in bio-monitoring of groundwater contamination.
Publication Impact Profile
- Citations
- Scopus - Citation Indexes: 2
- Captures
- Mendeley - Readers: 2
Publication details
References12
Barbosa V.L., Tandlich R. & Burgess J.E. Bioremediation of trace organic compounds found in precious metals refineri es’ wastewaters: A review of potential options, Chemosphere, The Netherlands, vol. 68/issue 7, pp 1195-1203, 2007.
Ma X., Archer T. & Wang C. Concentration effects on co mpetitive sorption of trichloroethylene and tetrachloroethylene to the roots of Typha latifolia: Implications for phytomonitoring, Water, Air, & Soil Pollution: Focus, The Netherlands, vol. 9/ issue 3- 4, pp 271-277, 2009.
Haest P.J., Lookman R., Van Keer I., Patyn J., Bronders J., Joris M., Bellon J. & De Smedt, F. Containment of groundwater pol lution (methyl tertiary butyl ether and benzene) to protect a drinking-water production site in Belgium, Hydrogeology Journal, Germany, vol. 18/issue 8, pp 1917-1925, 2010.
Ahmed A.A. & Chen D. Desorptio n kinetics of trichloroethylene and perchloroethylene from aged dense nonaqueous phase liquid-contaminated soil, Water and Environment Journal, The United Kingdom, vol. 24/issue 2, pp 159-164, 2010.
Peter A., Miles B. & Teutsch G. Estimation of emission from an LNAPL contaminated zone considering groundwater recharge. Environmental Geology, vol. 55/ issue 2, pp 321-337, 2008.
Struckhoff G.C., Burken J.G., Schumacher R. & Schumacher J.G. Available at: http://www.ecoeng.org/annual_meeting/2004/proceedings-final/S-7- McCutcheon/7c.burken.pdf, The United States of America, (originally published in 2004; website accessed on 25th March 2011).
Wang C., Ma X. & Walsh M.P. Competitive uptake and phy tomonitoring of chlorinated contaminant mixtures by Redosier Dogwood ( Cornus sericea), International Journal of Phytoremediation, The United States of America, vol. 13/issue 4, pp 333-344, 2011.
Heglund D.L. & Tilotta D.C. Determina tion of volatile organic compounds in water by solid phase microextraction and infrared spectroscopy, Environmental Science & Technology, The United States, vol. 30/issue 4, pp 1212-1219, 1996.
Huckins J.N., Petty J.D., Lebo J.A., Orazio C.E., Clark R.C. & Gibson, V. L. SPMD Technology Tutorial (3rd Edition), Available at: wwwaux.cerc.cr.usgs.gov/SPMD/SPMD-Tech_Tutorial.htm [3rd], pp 1-40. 2002.
Tandlich R., Vrana B. & Baláž Š. Monitoring of PCBs in Slovak Freshwater Sediments: Use of Semipermeable Memb rane Devices, In: “The Utilization of Bioremediation to Reduce Soil Contamination: Problems and Solutions” (V. Šašek, P. Baveye, J. A. Glaser, eds.), Kluwer Academ ic Publishers, NATO Science Series, Series IV: Earth and Environmental Sciences – Vol. 19. Dordrecht, The Netherlands, pp. 221- 226, 2003.
Ronen D., Lev-Wiener H. Graber E.R., Dahan O. & Weisbrod, N. Simultaneous counter-flow of chlorinated volatile organic compounds across the saturated-unsaturated interface region of an aquifer, Water Research, The United Kingdom, vol. 44/issue 7, pp 2107-2112, 2010.
Ma X. & Burken J.G. VOCs fate and partitioning in vegetation: Use of tree cores in groundwater analysis. Environmental Science and Technology, The United States of America, vol. 36/issue 21, pp 4663-4668, 2002.
View or Download full articleAccess options
SWS access login
Login as SWS Scientific CommitteeLogin as SWS Scientific PartnerLogin as SWS AuthorAuthors and approved SWS contributors will read and export their own linked papers after identity matching by SWS profile, email and SGEM GlobalID.
For librarian assistance: [email protected]
Purchase Instant Access
- Article can be downloaded after successful payment.
- Article may be used according to SWS library access terms.
- Article cannot be redistributed.