Natural attenuation in a groundwater contaminated with chloroaromatics

摘要

In the Bitterfeld region, the groundwater is extensively contaminated in the area of a disused chemical factory which once produced and used halogenated compounds on a large scale. Downstream of the contaminated area, high concentrations (up to 50 mg/L) of chloroaromatics, mainly monochlorobenzene, were detected in the upper (quaternary) aquifer. Our studies revealed that at least three processes are taking place or may be easily stimulated in the aquifer, resulting in a decrease in contaminant concentration in the groundwater: adsorption on lignite, reductive de-chlorination of multiple chlorinated aromatics, and aerobic degradation.