Remediation of Clayey Soil Contaminated with Copper Sulfate Using Washing-Enhanced Electrokinetics Technique

Abstract

The present study focused on remediation of clayey soil contaminated with two percentages of copper sulfate using washing-electrokinetics technique enhanced by purging solutions and mid compartment. The intact soil samples are obtained from Al-Ahdab oil field located in the southeast of Iraq, where the soil samples are contaminated synthetically with two percentages of copper sulfate (6666.66 and 26666.66) ppm for 30 days. The electrokinetics technique enhanced with a mid compartment to reduce the exist way of contaminant from the soil. Also, it is enhanced by purging solutions in the anode, mid, and cathode compartments to control the pH value of solutions in the resvoirs. The activated carbon is used to prevent the reverse osmotic flow from cathode to anode. The main results of physical model are the variation of electrical current with time, pH value, and the accumulated volume of osmotic flow. Increasing the concentration of copper causes raising the electrical current generated during the remediation process, so the chemical reaction occurred in the anode, mid and cathode compartments are increased. The removal efficiency of copper from soil samples ranged 98.4 to 99.6%, which indicated high efficiency within short time, but using washing process causes a reduction in the time required for remediation by 30% and causes a slight increase in the removal efficiency.