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Optimization and enhancement of soil bioremediation by composting using the experimental design technique

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Abstract

The objective of this study was the application of the experimental design technique to optimize the conditions for the bioremediation of contaminated soil by means of composting. A low-cost material such as compost from the Organic Fraction of Municipal Solid Waste as amendment and pyrene as model pollutant were used. The effect of three factors was considered: pollutant concentration (0.1–2 g/kg), soil:compost mixing ratio (1:0.5–1:2 w/w) and compost stability measured as respiration index (0.78, 2.69 and 4.52 mg O2 g−1 Organic Matter h−1). Stable compost permitted to achieve an almost complete degradation of pyrene in a short time (10 days). Results indicated that compost stability is a key parameter to optimize PAHs biodegradation. A factor analysis indicated that the optimal conditions for bioremediation after 10, 20 and 30 days of process were (1.4, 0.78, 1:1.4), (1.4, 2.18. 1:1.3) and (1.3, 2.18, 1:1.3) for concentration (g/kg), compost stability (mg O2 g−1 Organic Matter h−1) and soil:compost mixing ratio, respectively.

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Acknowledgments

Financial support was provided by the Spanish Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia (Project CTM2006-00315/TECNO). T. Sayara thanks Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo (AECID) for a pre-doctoral scholarship.

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  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, Escola Tècnica Superior d’Enginyeria, Edifici Q, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Cerdanyola, 08193, Barcelona, Spain

    Tahseen Sayara, Montserrat Sarrà & Antoni Sánchez

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  1. Tahseen Sayara
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  2. Montserrat Sarrà
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Correspondence to Antoni Sánchez.

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Sayara, T., Sarrà, M. & Sánchez, A. Optimization and enhancement of soil bioremediation by composting using the experimental design technique. Biodegradation 21, 345–356 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10532-009-9305-8

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