Brownfields are abandoned and unmaintained sites with discontinued industrial activities which are often located near residential areas or sources of drinking water. Typical ecological groundwater pollution in the vicinity of brownfields is generally characterized by high levels of petroleum substances, chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbons, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls and heavy metals. To reuse these sites, their decontamination is essential. There are countless literature sources on this issue, but the solutions presented often rely on sophisticated and costly methods, their application is at least problematic.
The team of dr. Šolcová from the Department of Catalysis and Reaction Engineering has long been dealing with physical-chemical methods of contaminated water treatment, including groundwater in the vicinity of brownfields. This issue is addressed in a recently published article in the prestigious journal Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety. The article deals with simple methods of groundwater remediation. Research has shown that the vast majority of contaminated water can be effectively decontaminated using relatively inexpensive and easy-to-perform methods connected in a series. Sequence of coagulation/sedimentation oxidation with Fenton’s reagent or ozone, or reduction with nanoiron adsorption on biochar post-treatment on activated carbon seems to be the most advantageous. The study assesses the effectiveness of individual methods in specific real cases and verifies the possibility of reaching the concentration limits of contaminants approved for groundwater according to the EU directives. The proposed solutions are demonstrated in the article on typical examples found in the Czech Republic.
Fig. Scheme of decontamination of the groundwater in the vicinity of brownfields
- Šolcová Olga, Krystyník Pavel, Dytrych Pavel, Bumba Jakub, Kaštánek František: Typical groundwater contamination in the vicinity of industrial brownfields and basic methods of their treatment. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 2022, 233, 113325, ISSN 0147-6513. E-ISSN 1090-2414. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoenv.2022.113325