Compound-specific isotope analysis (CSIA) evaluation of degradation of chlorinated benzenes (CBs) and benzene in a contaminated aquifer. 2022

Joan De Vera, and Weibin Chen, and Elizabeth Phillips, and Tetyana Gilevska, and Scott A Morgan, and Scott Norcross, and Kathryn West, and E Erin Mack, and Barbara Sherwood Lollar
Department of Earth Sciences, University of Toronto, 22 Ursula Franklin Street, M5S 3B1, Ontario, Canada.

Compound-specific isotope analysis (CSIA) has become a valuable tool in understanding the fate of organic contaminants at field sites. However, its application to chlorinated benzenes (CBs), a group of toxic and persistent groundwater contaminants, has received less attention. This study employed CSIA to investigate the occurrence of natural degradation of various CBs and benzene in a contaminated aquifer. Despite the complexity of the study area (e.g., installation of a sheet pile barrier and the presence of a complex set of contaminants), the substantial enrichments in δ13C values (i.e., >2‰) for all CBs and benzene across the sampling wells indicate in situ degradation of these compounds. In particular, the 13C enrichments for 1,2,4-trichlorobenzene (1,2,4-TCB) and 1,2-dichlorobenzene (1,2-DCB) display good correlations with decreasing groundwater concentrations, consistent with the effects of in situ biodegradation. Using the Rayleigh model, the extent of degradation (EoD) is estimated to be 47-99% for 1,2-DCB, and 21-73% for 1,2,4-TCB. The enrichments observed for the other CBs (1,4-DCB and chlorobenzene (MCB)) and benzene at the site are also suggestive of in situ biodegradation. Due to simultaneous degradation and production of 1,4-DCB (a major 1,2,4-TCB degradation product), MCB (from DCB degradation), and benzene (from MCB degradation), the estimation of EoD for these intermediate compounds is more complex but a modelling simulation supports in situ biodegradation of these daughter products. In particular, the fact that the δ13C values of MCB and benzene (i.e., daughter products of 1,2,4-TCB) are more enriched than the original δ13C value of their parent 1,2,4-TCB provides definitive evidence for the occurrence of in situ biodegradation of the MCB and benzene.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007554 Isotopes Atomic species differing in mass number but having the same atomic number. (Grant & Hackh's Chemical Dictionary, 5th ed) Isotope
D002247 Carbon Isotopes Stable carbon atoms that have the same atomic number as the element carbon but differ in atomic weight. C-13 is a stable carbon isotope. Carbon Isotope,Isotope, Carbon,Isotopes, Carbon
D002722 Chlorobenzenes Aromatic organic compounds with the chemical formula C6H5Cln.
D001554 Benzene Toxic, volatile, flammable liquid hydrocarbon byproduct of coal distillation. It is used as an industrial solvent in paints, varnishes, lacquer thinners, gasoline, etc. Benzene causes central nervous system damage acutely and bone marrow damage chronically and is carcinogenic. It was formerly used as parasiticide. Benzol,Benzole,Cyclohexatriene
D001673 Biodegradation, Environmental Elimination of ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTANTS; PESTICIDES and other waste using living organisms, usually involving intervention of environmental or sanitation engineers. Bioremediation,Phytoremediation,Natural Attenuation, Pollution,Environmental Biodegradation,Pollution Natural Attenuation
D014874 Water Pollutants, Chemical Chemical compounds which pollute the water of rivers, streams, lakes, the sea, reservoirs, or other bodies of water. Chemical Water Pollutants,Landfill Leachate,Leachate, Landfill,Pollutants, Chemical Water
D060587 Groundwater Liquid water present beneath the surface of the earth. Aquifers,Ground Water,Ground-Water,Subterranean Lakes,Underground Lakes,Underground Streams,Underground Water,Water Table,Aquifer,Ground Waters,Ground-Waters,Groundwaters,Lake, Subterranean,Lake, Underground,Lakes, Subterranean,Lakes, Underground,Stream, Underground,Streams, Underground,Subterranean Lake,Table, Water,Tables, Water,Underground Lake,Underground Stream,Underground Waters,Water Tables,Water, Underground,Waters, Underground

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