Benzene Toxicity and Removal in Laboratory Phytoremediation Studies
Publication: Practice Periodical of Hazardous, Toxic, and Radioactive Waste Management
Volume 5, Issue 3
Abstract
Hybrid poplar cuttings were shown to impact the fate and transport of subsurface benzene, while toxicity to the poplars was not observed. Laboratory experiments investigated the toxicity response of poplar cuttings to benzene exposure, contaminant distribution in plant tissues, contaminant degradation in the soil profile, and contaminant volatilization from the soil and plant tissues. Two separate studies were conducted to evaluate these parameters. The first study examined the toxicity of benzene to hybrid poplar cuttings in batch reactors. Poplar cuttings were exposed to various concentrations of benzene contaminated water in two different types of soil. Transpiration rates were measured as an indicator of acute toxicity. No acute toxicity was noted for dose concentrations up to 1,000 ppm. The second study evaluated benzene fate and transport. Live poplar cuttings and excised controls were planted in flow-through reactors and supplied with an influent benzene stream to mimic plume conditions. The presence of live poplar cuttings enhanced benzene degradation and decreased the effluent mass of benzene. A small amount of benzene was also volatilized from the plant tissues, providing evidence of plant-enhanced volatilization. Causes for the higher degradation rates appeared to be greater microbial populations of benzene degraders and a more oxygen-rich environment. The higher redox potential observed may be an artifact of the laboratory reactor design. The results obtained in this research combined with previous studies provide evidence that phytoremediation has the potential for effective, efficient, and environmentally friendly application at sites highly contaminated with benzene and potentially for other sites contaminated with biodegradable organics or volatile organic compounds.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
1.
Baird, C. ( 1995). “Natural waters: Contamination and purification.” Environmental chemistry, W. H. Freeman and Co., New York, 287–292.
2.
Briggs, G. G., Bromilow, R. H., and Evans, A. A. ( 1982). “Relationships between lipophilicity and root uptake and translocation of non-ionized chemicals by barley.” Pesticide Sci., London, 13, 495–504.
3.
Bromilow, R. H., and Chamberlain, K. ( 1995). “Principles governing uptake and transport of chemicals.” Plant contamination: Modeling and simulation of organic chemical processes, CRC, Boca Raton, Fla., 38–68.
4.
Burken, J. G. ( 1996). “Uptake and fate of organic contaminants by hybrid poplar trees.” PhD dissertation, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa.
5.
Burken, J. G., and Schnoor, J. L. ( 1998). “Predictive relationships for uptake of organic contaminants by hybrid poplar trees.” Envir. Sci. and Technol., 32(21), 3379–3385.
6.
Burken, J. G., and Schnoor, J. L. ( 1999). “Distribution and volatilization of organic contaminants following uptake by hybrid poplar trees.” Int. J. Phytoremediation, 1(2), 139–152.
7.
Dietz, A. C., and Schnoor, J. L. ( 2001). “Phytotoxicity of chlorinated aliphatics to hybrid poplar (Populus deltoides x nigra, DN-34).” Envir. Toxicology Chemistry, 20, 389–393.
8.
Ferro, A. ( 1997). “Deep rooted poplars for the phytoremediation of groundwater impacted with petroleum hydrocarbons—Theory and application.” Proc., 2nd Annu. Conf. on Phytoremediation, International Business Communications, Westborough, Mass.
9.
Ferro, A. M., et al. ( 1997). “Fate of benzene in soils planted with alfalfa: Uptake, volatilization and degradation.” Phytoremediation of soil and water contaminants, American Chemical Society, Washington, D.C., 223–237.
10.
Ferro, A. M., Kennedy, J., Kjelgren, R., Rieder, J., and Perrin, S. ( 1999). “Toxicity assessment of volatile organic compounds in poplar trees.” Int. J. Phytoremediation, 1(1), 9–17.
11.
Hinckley, T. M., et al. ( 1994). “Water flux in a hybrid poplar stand.” Tree Physiology, Victoria, B.C., Canada, 14, 1005–1018.
12.
Jones, S. A., Lee, R. W., and Kuniansky, E. L. ( 1999). “Phytoremediation of trichloroethene (TCE) using cottonwood trees.” Proc., 5th Int. In Situ and On-Site Bioremediation Symp.: Phytoremediation and Innovative Strategies for Specialized Remedial Applications, Battelle, San Diego, 101–108.
13.
Norris, R. D., et al. ( 1994). “Bioremediation of chlorinated solvents using alternative electron acceptors.” Handbook of bioremediation, Lewis, Boca Raton, Fla., 151.
14.
Reilley, K. A., Banks, M. K., and Schwab, A. P. ( 1996). “Organic chemicals in the environment: Dissipation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the rhizosphere.” J. Envir. Quality, 25(2), 212–219.
15.
Scheidemann, P., Klunk, A., Sens, C., and Werner, D. ( 1998). “Species dependent uptake and tolerance of nitroaromatic compounds by higher plants.” J. Plant Physiology, Jena, Germany, 152, 242–247.
16.
Schwab, A. P., and Banks, M. K. ( 1994). “Biologically mediated dissipation of polyaromatic hydrocarbons in the root zone.” Bioremediation through rhizosphere technology, American Chemical Society, Washington, D.C., 132–141.
17.
Suthersan, S. S. ( 1997). “Contaminant characteristics and partitioning.” Remediation engineering: Design concepts, CRC, Lewis, Boca Raton, Fla., 3–26.
18.
Swiss Farm Products, Inc. ( 1999). “Washington State Department of Agriculture fertilizer product information—Sam's Choice continuous feeding potting mix .14-.14-.14.” 〈http://www-app2.wa.gov/agr/ prodinfo.asp?pname=8983〉.
19.
Thompson, P., et al. ( 1998). “Decreased transpiration in poplar trees exposed to 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluene.” Envir. Toxicology Chemistry, 17(5), 902–906.
20.
Trapp, S. ( 2000). “Modeling uptake into roots and subsequent translocation of neutral and ionizable organic compounds.” Pest Mgmt. Sci., West Sussex, U.K., (56), 767–778.
21.
Trapp, S., and McFarlane, J. C. ( 1995). Plant contamination: Modeling and simulation of organic chemical processes, CRC, Boca Raton, Fla.
22.
Wetzel, S. C., Banks, M. K., and Schwab, A. P. ( 1996). “Rhizosphere effects on the degradation of pyrene and anthracene in soil.” Proc., ASCE Conf., ASCE, New York, 605–613.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Practice Periodical of Hazardous, Toxic, and Radioactive Waste Management
Volume 5 • Issue 3 • July 2001
Pages: 161 - 171
History
Received: Mar 22, 2001
Published online: Jul 1, 2001
Published in print: Jul 2001
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.