Evidence of colloidal transport of PAHs during column experiments run with contaminated soil samples.

Brownfield soils may contain high levels of organic pollutants particularly polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). It is essential to predict their migration and fate and to evaluate the risk of transfer to sensitive targets, such as water resources, ecosystems and human health. In this study, soil samples have been taken from an experimental contaminated site of former steel activities located at Homecourt (Lorraine, France). These samples have been lixiviated in laboratory column in water-saturated condition at room temperature. The effluent has been collected by fraction and analysed by a standard method giving total concentration of each of 16 PAHs. The breakthrough curves of 16 PAHs significantly evolve in the same way according to the volume of effluent and tend to vanish to 12-15 pore volumes. If several PAHs remain at a concentration below the solubility, others clearly exceed this threshold. Material balance sheets show that only a very small fraction of PAHs is mobilised. These results are interpreted by postulating that PAHs are transported by the solution not only in the dissolved state but also by associations with particulate or dissolved organic matter.

Sorption of selenium oxyanions on TiO2 (rutile) studied by batch or column experiments and spectroscopic methods.

Selenium is a known toxic element released in the environment by anthropogenic activities. The present study is devoted to the aqueous sorption behaviour of selenium oxyanions (selenate and selenite) on a reference oxide surface, namely rutile TiO(2). Batch sorption kinetics and isotherms have been studied using different physico-chemical conditions of the solution (changes of pH and ionic strength). The sorption was favoured for both anions in acidic conditions, in agreement with a surface complexation mechanism and CD-MUSIC predictions. Spectroscopic investigations of the sorbed rutile powder were also consistent with such a mechanism. EXAFS spectra confirmed that for selenite anions, an inner-sphere mechanism was the most probable process observed. Dynamic sorption experiments using a column filled with rutile powder also substantiated that a part of the surface complexes follows the inner-sphere mechanism, but also evidenced that an outer-sphere mechanism cannot be excluded, especially for selenate anions.

Comparison between batch and column experiments to determine the surface charge properties of rutile TiO2 powder.

This paper reports a comparative study of three methods for determining the surface charge and acid-base behavior of a TiO(2) rutile material. Electrophoretic mobility measurements were performed using two different batch protocols: (i) a "static" mode that consisted of immersing the rutile powder in aqueous solutions of given pH's and ionic strengths for 10 h, and (ii) a "dynamic" mode that consisted of using an automatic titrator to continuously adjust the solution pH with a contact time of 15 min. The same apparatus (a Nanosizer from Malvern) was used to measure the zeta potential of the particles in both methods. These batch experiments were next compared to the determination of the surface charge of rutile using nonlinear chromatography in column experiments. In that case, the rutile powder was compacted to enable the formation of a proper column bed. Therefore, Raman scattering and X-ray photoelectron spectra were used, as well as other physical information such as specific surface area and morphology of the particles, to verify that the rutile powder and compacted form were identical. The three approaches were then compared and discussed in relation to the acid-base behavior of the rutile material.

PAHs and organic matter partitioning and mass transfer from coal tar particles to water.

The coal tar found in contaminated soils of former manufactured gas plants and coking plants acts as a long-term source of PAHs. Organic carbon and PAH transfer from coal tar particles to water was investigated with closed-looped laboratory column experiments run at various particle sizes and temperatures. Two models were derived. The first one represented the extraction process at equilibrium and was based on a linear partitioning of TOC and PAHs between coal tar and water. The partition coefficient was derived as well as the mass of extractable organic matter in the particles. The second model dealt with mass transfer. Particle diffusion was the limiting step; organic matter diffusivity in the coal tar was then computed in the different conditions. A good consistency was obtained between experimental and computed results. Hence, the modeling of PAH migration in contaminated soils at the field scale requires taking into account coal tar as the source-term for PAH release.

Selection of an adsorbent for lead removal from drinking water by a point-of-use treatment device.

The removal of lead from drinking water was investigated to develop a point-of-use water filter that could meet the regulation imposed by the new European Directive 98-83 lowering lead concentration in drinking water below 10 microgL(-1). The objective of this research was to assess the potential of different adsorbents (zeolites, resins, activated carbon, manganese oxides, cellulose powder) to remove lead from tap water with a very short contact time. To begin, the repartition of the lead species in a tap water and a mineral water was computed with the computer model CHESS. It showed that in bicarbonated waters lead is mainly under lead carbonate form, either in the aqueous or in the mineral phase. Batch experiments were then conducted to measure the equilibrium adsorption isotherms of the adsorbents. Then, for five of them, dynamic experiments in micro-columns were carried out to assess the outlet lead concentration level. Three adsorbents gave rise to a leakage concentration lower than 10 microgL(-1) and were then selected for prototypes experiments: chabasite, an activated carbon coated with a synthetic zeolite and a natural manganese oxide. The proposed method clearly showed that the measurement of equilibrium isotherms is not sufficient to predict the effectiveness of an adsorbent, and must be coupled with dynamic experiments.