Scientists from the Vyatka State University (Vyatka State University), together with colleagues from the Federal Research Center "Komi Scientific Center of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences" (Komi Scientific Center of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences) proposed a new way to eliminate the consequences in oil production areas or near gas stations. It turned out that peat gel, a biologically active substance based on peat, which is still used in agriculture, will help reduce the toxicity of soils contaminated with oil products. This was reported in the press service of Vyatka State University.
Information taken from the portal "Scientific Russia".
Scientists from Vyatka State University conducted a model laboratory experiment, the results of which showed that adding only 5% of peat gel to the soil in a liquid state gives the same effect as adding 50% of pure peat in a normal state. At the same time, there is no need to loosen the soil and deepen the sorbent; it does not need to be removed from the soil afterwards. This is the novelty of the proposed technology.
“Peat was added to one part of the prototypes, 50 percent of the dry mass. In other samples, 5 percent of peat gel was added based on the dry weight of the soil. Further, the control soil and the soil with additives were cultivated for 30 days, then the residual content of oil products and the toxicity of the soil were determined by the responses of living organisms (daphnia Daphnia magna Straus, infusoria Paramecium caudatum Ehrenberg, Escherichia coli bacteria),” explained the professor of the Department of Ecology and Nature Management of Vyatka State University Anna Olkova.
In the future, scientists plan to find out the sorption and protective properties of peat gel in the field, including at elevated levels of pollution with oil products and other substances.
Materials provided by the press service of Vyatka State University. Information taken from the portal "Scientific Russia".
