HYDROCARBONS DIAGNOSTIC OF POLLUTED SOILS

Abstract

Petroleum hydrocarbons are known as carcinogenic and may contaminate the environment (water, air and soil). In this study, a diagnostic of polluted soils by petroleum hydrocarbons is carried out in order to know the effect of their accumulation as well as their behavior in time. The aging factor, a source of significant changing in hydrocarbon behavior, is integrated on two sites of an industrial refinery as experimental samples. The first site is recently polluted by hydrocarbons while the second is a previously polluted site.The results indicate that the concentration of hydrocarbons on the surface of the first site is greater and remains stable in time, as for the second site, hydrocarbons concentration on the surface is also important and undergoes a weak reduction. At a depth of one meter hydrocarbons exist at a greater concentration. This shows that obstinate hydrocarbons are an environmental danger for fauna and flora.

Keywords

• petroleum hydrocarbons
• Pyrolytic
• carcinogenic
• diagnostic
• accumulation
• behaviors