decomposition of PAHs in soil and desorption of organic solvents using microwave energy

The decomposition of individual PAHʹs (benzo[ ]pyrene, benzo[ ]fluoranthene, dibenz[ , ]anthracene, benz[ ]anthracene, 1-nitropyrene and benzo[ ]quinoline) in soil in an open vessel using microwave energy is reported. No PAHʹs remain in the soil after remediation. An attempt to use 14C-labelled benzo[ ]pyrene to determine the fate of that contaminant on remediation led only to the observation of the formation of 0.3% of 14CO2. None of the other decomposition products could be extracted, isolated or quantified. Using a similar procedure, a variety of organic solvents (cyclohexane, 1,1,1-trichloroethane, tetrachloroethylene, benzene, toluene and xylene) could be efficiently desorbed and collected from contaminated soil. These experiments offer a valid model for the remediation of these pollutants from contaminated soil.