An Investigation on the Removal of High Concentrations of PAHs Using Two-Liquid Phase System

Abstract

Two-liquid phase systems consisting of two insoluble liquids can be effective in removing high concentrations of hydrocarbons from aqueous environments. In this study, the removal efficiencies of Naphthalene (Nap), Acenaphthene (Acn), Fluorene (Flu), Fluoranthene (Flr), Anthracene (Ant), and Pyrene (Pyr) at high concentrations in the two-liquid phase system were investigated. Two-liquid phase systems were constituted using Bis (2-Ethylhexyl) sebacate (BES) and aqueous fermentation media. Nutrient Broth (NB) and Bushnell Haas Yeast (BHY) medium were used as aqueous fermentation media. Acn, Flu, Flr, Ant, Pyr, and Nap were degraded at a rate of 93.1%, 80.8%, 57.6%, 68.5%, 63.8%, and 100%, respectively with BES/NB system. In the BES/BHY system, Acn, Flu, Flr, Ant, Pyr, and Nap, were degraded at a rate of 29.6%, 44.3%, 22.8%, 68.1%, and 19.7%, 45.4%, respectively. When both systems are compared, it has been shown that the BES/NB system can be effective under specified conditions.