Remediation Methods of Crude Oil Contaminated Soil

Crude oil utilization has improved our living standard, but it has also threatened the aquatic and terrestrial environment with its harmful effects. It contains harmful substances such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) that can cause mutation and cancer. Soil contamination is of particular concern as it does not only effects human health but also vegetation growth and biological environment. Many remediation techniques have been devised but a quick, nature friendly and cost-effective method is required to remove and minimize the dangerous effects of crude oil. In this review, different remediation techniques to remove crude oil from the soil have been discussed, focusing on their current advancement. Chemical, physical and thermal methods used for the cleanup of soil have many demerits, so focus is shifted toward biological methods such as microbial remediation and phytoremediation. Recently microbes and plants are used together as rhizoremediation technique to remove contaminants from the soil because of its significant results.

Keywords: Crude oil; Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; Bioremediation; Rhizoremediation