Remediation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from soil using superheated water extraction

•Removal of four PAHs (naphthalene, phenanthrene, anthracene and pyrene) from soil using superheated water was investigated.•Superheated water significantly reduced concentration of soil PAHs.•Optimum operating conditions was nearly 20bar and 160°C.•Modeling and simulation of the process was carried out successfully. In this study, superheated water extraction (SWE) was used for remediation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) incl. naphthalene, phenanthrene, anthracene and pyrene from contaminated soil. The effect of two parameters including the water temperature and extraction time on remediation efficiency was investigated. Water temperature was varied from 100 to 180°C and extraction time ranging from 5 to 20min. A two-phase mathematical model was developed to evaluate the behavior of superheated water extraction process and to simulate the remediation of PAHs from contaminated soils. The results showed that the remediation efficiency depends strongly on water temperature. Also, the capability of superheated water as a green solvent for remediation of PAHs from soil was proven.