Review on the contamination and remediation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in coastal soil and sediments

Chaomeng Dai; Yueming Han; Yanping Duan; Xiaoying Lai; Rongbing Fu; Shuguang Liu; Kah Hon Leong; Yaojen Tu; Lang Zhou

doi:10.1016/j.envres.2021.112423

Review on the contamination and remediation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in coastal soil and sediments

Environ Res. 2022 Apr 1:205:112423. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.112423. Epub 2021 Nov 24.

Authors

Chaomeng Dai¹, Yueming Han¹, Yanping Duan², Xiaoying Lai³, Rongbing Fu⁴, Shuguang Liu¹, Kah Hon Leong⁵, Yaojen Tu⁶, Lang Zhou⁷

Affiliations

¹ College of Civil Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai, 200092, PR China.
² Institute of Urban Studies, School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, 100 Guilin Rd., Shanghai, 200234, PR China; Yangtze River Delta Urban Wetland Ecosystem National Field Observation and Research Station, Shanghai, 200234, China. Electronic address: duanyanping@shnu.edu.cn.
³ College of Management and Economics, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, PR China.
⁴ State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Road, Shanghai, 200092, PR China.
⁵ Department of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Green Technology, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Jalan Universiti, Bandar Barat, Kampar, 31900, Perak, Malaysia.
⁶ Institute of Urban Studies, School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences, Shanghai Normal University, 100 Guilin Rd., Shanghai, 200234, PR China; Yangtze River Delta Urban Wetland Ecosystem National Field Observation and Research Station, Shanghai, 200234, China.
⁷ Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin, 301 E. Dean Keeton St., Stop C1786, Austin, TX, 78712, USA.

PMID: 34838568
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.112423

Abstract

The rapid economic and population growth in coastal areas is causing increasingly serious polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) pollution in these regions. This review compared the PAHs pollution characteristics of different coastal areas, including industrial zones, commercial ports, touristic cities, aquacultural & agricultural areas, oil & gas exploitation areas and megacities. Currently there are various treatment methods to remediate soils and sediments contaminated with PAHs. However, it is necessary to provide a comprehensive overview of all the available remediation technologies up to date, so appropriate technologies can be selected to remediate PAHs pollution. In view of that, we analyzed the characteristics of the remediation mechanism, summarized the remediation methods for soil or sediments in coastal areas, which were physical repair, chemical oxidation, bioremediation and integrated approaches. Besides, this review also reported the development of new multi-functional green and sustainable systems, namely, micro-nano bubble (MNB), biochar, reversible surfactants and peracetic acid. While physical repair, expensive but efficient, was regarded as a suitable method for the PAHs remediation in coastal areas because of land shortage, integrated approaches would produce better results. The ultimate aim of the review was to ensure the successful restructuring of PAHs contaminated soil and sediments in coastal areas. Due to the environment heterogeneity, PAHs pollution in coastal areas remains as a daunting challenge. Therefore, new and suitable technologies are still needed to address the environmental issue.

Keywords: Coastal areas; Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs); Remediation; Soil and sediments.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

Biodegradation, Environmental
Cities
Environmental Monitoring
Geologic Sediments
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons* / analysis
Soil
Soil Pollutants* / analysis

Substances

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons
Soil
Soil Pollutants