Use of Compound-Specific Isotope Analyses as a Tool to Demonstrate Biodegradation of Petroleum Hydrocarbons in Contaminated Groundwater

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Daniel Bouchard
Patrick Hohener
Daniel Hunkeler

Abstract

Natural attenuation of organic contaminants in groundwater was shown to be a cost effective strategy to manage petroleum hydrocarbon contaminated sites and the occurrence of biodegradation is often the key process to be demonstrated for a successful monitored natural attenuation program. To achieve such a task, it was shown that compound-specific isotope analysis is a reliable tool to assess biodegradation of organic contaminants dissolved in the groundwater, and more recently for gas-phase organic contaminants present in soil pores. This paper summarises the state-of-the-art application of stable isotope analyses by hydrogeologists to assess biodegradation of organic contaminants on field sites.

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