Petroleum contamination of sandy soils is a severe environmental problem in Libya but relatively little work has been carried out to optimize the bioremediation of such soils. The purpose of this thesis was to determine the potential for bioremediation 0 hydrocarbon-contaminated soil obtained from the Zawia refinery field, Libya. Initial work involved chemical and microbial characterisation of the contaminated soil. Chemical analysis revealed high levels of petroleum contamination (up to 26532 mg TPH per kg soil) and that the soil was contaminated with a mixture of crude oil an, diesel oil. Five isolates from the contaminated soil were identified as potential hydrocarbon degraders and were able to grow on crude oil and diesel oil as a sole carbon source, Two isolates, Pseudomonas putida and Bacillus sp., were chosen for us as potential microbial inoculants because they showed superior pertormance in terms growth on hydrocarbons, emulsifying activity and ability to transform hydrocarbons in pure culture.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:601761 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Althalb, Hakima |
| Publisher | University of Newcastle Upon Tyne |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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