Organic Complexing Agents for Remediation of Heavy Metal Contaminated Soil

Abstract: Organic complexing agents for remediation of heavy metal contaminated soilSoil washing of heavy metal contaminated soil may be enhanced by the addition of synthetic chelators. Since many of these chelators may imply stress to soil organisms and are poorly biodegraded, identification and evaluation of effective biodegradable or recyclable chelators (synthetic and/or naturally produced) is of great interest.The efficiency of biodegradable synthetic chelators was evaluated both in bench- (0.3 kg) and meso- (10 kg) scale. Results demonstrated that the solubilization of copper, lead, and zinc was similar in bench- and meso-scale systems, which indicated that these systems could be used in a technical scale. However, the arsenic extraction in meso-scale system, were non-conclusive.Due to the high cost involved in the purchase of synthetic chelating agents, recycling of the solutions is of great interest, and this was achieved in five consecutive washing cycles. Considering the economy of a full-scale process, recycling of complexing solutions with sulfide addition at each cycle, both at the 100 mM-level, appears feasible.Naturally derived chelators were produced by saprotrophic fungi and through alkaline degradation of humic substances and cellulose. The results demonstrated that these types of complexing agents are not as effective as the synthetic chelators. In the fungal systems, desorption of metals was related to production of organic complexing acids, but mainly to the pH-decrease. Nonetheless, in some systems, formation of soluble complexes was indicated (copper). Enhancement of copper, lead, and zinc release with the use of alkaline leachates from wood and peat appeared possible. Since these agents have a natural origin and are derived from rather cheap raw material, recycling is not an issue.