Bioslurry treatment for soils contaminated with very high concentrations of 2,4,6-trinitrophenylmethylnitramine (tetryl)

Past and current DoD activities have resulted in the contamination of soil, sediment and groundwater with various explosive compounds. This research was undertaken to determine the effectiveness of a soil bioslurry process for remediation of soil with very high concentrations of 2,4,6-trinitrophenylmethylnitramine (tetryl). A 99.9% reduction in tetryl concentrations (from 100,000 to below 100 mg/kg) was achieved in 180 to 200 days. A variety of process modifications (i.e. addition of fertilizer, microbial biomass, purging with nitrogen, etc.) that were performed during the course of the experiment did not increase the tetryl biodegradation rate beyond the rates of degradation without modifications. Subsequent batches of soil added as a 25% (v/v) replacement of the slurry were also degraded. These results indicate the potential for this process to remediate highly contaminated soils at many former and current ammunition manufacturing sites.