Bioaugmentation and Biostimulation-Enhanced Bioremediation of Hydrocarbon-Contaminated Soil Evaluation of the Effect of Soil Washing Pre-Treatment and Bacterial Communities

Abstract

Fuel, a petroleum derivative, contributes to soil pollution because of its hydrocarbons, which are difficult to decompose. Bioremediation can assist by introducing microbes that are capable of degrading hydrocarbons and enhancing this process by adding nutrients. This study validated previous research by adding the most optimum nutrients, bacteria with the right ratio, and pre-treatment of soil washing on the degradation value of hydrocarbons in crude oil-contaminated soil. Pre-treatment involved washing the soil with surfactant tween-80, determining the type of mixed bacterial culture variables, adding varying concentrations of inoculum and inorganic nutrients, and determining the optimal total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) reduction. The study found that the provision of nutrients, bacteria, and pre-treatment in soil washing had no significant effect on the original soil TPH.