Advances in microbial remediation of soils polluted by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

Abstract:

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are a group of persistent organic pollutants that require strict control according to the national standard for soil environmental quality of China. Remediation using microbial process is recognized as economical and eco-friendly technology with great potential. Recent advances in microbial remediation with regards to biotransformation mechanisms and microbial response to soil pollution open up new perspectives on the field-scale bioremediation and management for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-contaminated soil. The review provides an overview of microbial remediation of soil polluted by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, surveying comprehensively from remediation technology, biodegradation characteristics, to microbial response to soil pollution. At last, some theoretical bottlenecks in development of microbial remediation techniques are discussed.