Biochar aerogel enhanced remediation performances for heavy oil-contaminated soil through biostimulation strategy

Petroleum leakages can seriously damage the soil environment and cause a persistent harm to human health, due to the release of heavy oil pollutants with a high viscosity and high molecular weight. In this paper, biochar aerogel materials were successfully prepared under 600, 700 and 800 ℃ (accordingly labeled as 600-aerogel, 700-aerogel and 800-aerogel) with green, sustainable and abundant sisal leaves as raw materials for the remediation of heavy oil-contaminated soil. The remediation performances of biochar aerogel supplement for heavy oil-contaminated soil were investigated, while microbial abundance and community structure were characterized. The degradation efficiency of 600-aerogel, 700-aerogel and 800-aerogel treatments was accordingly 80.69%, 86.04% and 86.62% after 60 days. Apart from adsorption behavior, biostimulation strengthened the degradation efficiency, according to findings from first-order degradation kinetics. Biochar aerogel supplement basically increased genera microbial abundance for Sinomonas, Streptomyces, Sphingomonas and Massilia with petroleum degradation abilities through microorganisms' biostimulation. Sinomonas as the dominant genus with the highest abundance probably contributed much higher capacities to heavy oil degradation. This study can provide an inspiring reference for the development of green carbon-based materials to be applied in heavy oil-contaminated soils through biostimulation mechanisms.