Identification of hydrocarbon sources in contaminated soils of three industrial areas.

The present paper deals with identification of hydrocarbon sources in contaminated soil of three tank farms located in north, central and south Italy. Parent polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (naphthalene through benzo(g,h,i)perylene) and n-alkanes (n-C10 through n-C36) were determined. The study of source assignments was carried out by their distribution patterns, their diagnostic ratios, and determination of less-commonly used markers. The data show anthropogenic and biogenic origin of n-alkanes and petrogenic and pyrolytic sources of PAHs. Multiple sources of hydrocarbons, that were not considered in the preliminary environmental assessments, are identified. The application of a multi-criteria approach allows to locate petroleum pollution sources that affect the study sites. The results demonstrate that the application of a multi-criteria approach for source identification is a key point to assess environmental damage and prove that an accurate study of source identification has to be performed. The suggested methodology is a useful tool to manage contaminated sites and to plan appropriate interventions of clean up.

Environmental assessment of a site contaminated by organic compounds.

This paper presents a study on environmental assessment of an abandoned industrial area located in central Italy. Main production was refractory materials and compounds for treatment of industrial wastewater. The present work deals with a methodology for development of a sound sampling design, chemical characterization of soil samples, definition of the degree of site contamination according to law limits and evaluation of the fate and transport of contaminants by EPA simulation model (VLEACH 2.2a). Results indicate that toxic compounds (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and plasticizers) are uniformly distributed in the contaminated site and only in one sampling point their concentrations exceed law limits. Modeling results confirm that contaminants migration to groundwater can be excluded, addressing for a site remediation limited to the surface layer.