Clay mineral-based additives for the in situ bioremediation of hydrocarbon-contaminated agricultural soils

Publication date: 12-12-2025
Extent: 14 pages

Contributions by: Solmaz Bidast and Santosh Kumar Paul, University of Newcastle, Australia; Ravi Naidu, CRC for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of the Environment (crcCARE), Australia; and Bhabananda Biswas, The University of Newcastle, Australia/CRC for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of the Environment (crcCARE), Australia/University of Greifswald, Germany

Chapter synopsis:

Agricultural soils can be contaminated with range of pollutants, including heavy metal(loid)s, petroleum hydrocarbons (PHCs), pesticides, and microplastic. Among them, PHCs are associated with oil handling, nearby mining operations, used tires, surface runoff, and agrochemicals. Bioremediation such as microbial degradation or phytoremediation can breakdown these PHCs. However, active microorganisms often require additional support, such as additives that can boost their degradation efficiency. Many additives have been known for a long time. Certain mineral-based additives, both in their raw and modified forms, have been the focus of much research by numerous researchers. These additives have the potential to be used directly in agricultural soil. This chapter will discuss clay mineral-based additives that can be biostimulator for the bioremediation of hydrocarbons in agricultural soil.

DOI: 10.19103/AS.2025.0151.15