Remediation of hydrocarbon-contaminated soils using bacterial biomass: Systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Hydrocarbons are considered one of the most toxic pollutants, since they generate harmful substances for the soil, which lead s to the deterioration of its structure. The objective of this research was to evaluate, through a systematic review and meta -analysis, the efficiency of the use of bacterial biomass for the remediation of soils contaminated by hydrocarbons. The methodology was based on a qua ntitative approach, of applicative type and non-experimental design. For the collection of information, articles published between January 2011 and September 2021 were considered, using the Web of Science and Scopus databases. The meta -analysis was performed using Review Manager 5.4 software (Revman). The results revealed that the included investigations showed considerable statistical heterogeneity (I² = 91% ) and that the highest percentage of hydrocarbon adsorption (100% ) was achieved by Jiang et al. (2015) u sing Bacillus Thuringiensis, having a concentration of 500 mg/kg phenanthrene in soil. Finally, it is concluded that the application of bacterial biomass is effici ent for the adsorption of hydrocarbons present in contaminated soils, and it is an environmentally friendly technique that does not generate harmful products.