Electro-bioremediation of a mixture of structurally different contaminants of emerging concern: Uncovering electrokinetic contribution

This study analyses the electrokinetic (EK) contribution to removal from a clay soil of mixture 10 different contaminants emerging concern (CECs; 17?-estradiol, E2; sulfamethoxazole, SMX; bisphenol A, BPA; ibuprofen, IBU; 17?-ethinylestradiol, EE2; oxybenzone, OXY; diclofenac, DCF; triclosan, TCS; caffeine, CAF; carbamazepine, CBZ). After 4 days, CECs natural attenuation was between 0% (CBZ) and 90% (E2) yet increasing with application EK (20 mA, 12 h ON/OFF) 14% 100% (E2). When applied, more recalcitrant biodegradation (i.e. ? 13% biotic decay) mostly underwent electro-chemical induced degradation (OXY, DCF, TCS, CAF, Daily irrigation enhanced rates electro-oxidation -osmosis -migration, decay. 8 days treatment, decay increased, surpassing lag phase some compounds Yet after 16 most showed similar removals without EK, only acting positively on SMX, OXY, TCS CBZ (ca. +10%). Our results support that can improve soil, however, under conditions tested, 16-day treatment lead pH alterations decreased bioremediation efficiency inhibited electro-degradation near cathode.