*Ex Situ* **Surfactant-Enhanced Bioremediation of NAPL-Impacted Vadose Zone** *Ex Situ* **Surfactant-Enhanced Bioremediation of NAPL-Impacted Vadose Zone**

Roger Saint-Fort Roger Saint-Fort

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/64695

#### **Abstract**

This work presents a review of surfactant-enhanced bioremediation of hydrophobic organic contaminants in the soil with a focus on *ex situ* method. Conventional strategies of disposal methods in secure landfill and incineration have become cost prohibitive and environmentally risky and do not restore the contaminated soil, whereas chemical and physical methods have shown very limited success and can also be expensive.Traditional bioremediation pertaining to remedial technology of hydrophobic organic contaminants in soil has empirically demonstrated limited success due to their low aqueous solubility. Addition of single synthetic surfactant or biosurfactant, or in combination, has the potential to increase their mass transfer phase, hence their bioavailability. Surfactant-enhanced biodegradation represents a promising costeffective alternative to complete mineralization of hydrophobic organic contaminants in soil. In this work, the potential of surfactants on the remediation of contaminated soil in an *ex situ* approach is reviewed with considerations given to the practical aspects of field components. Surfactant-enhanced biodegradation represents a promising costeffective alternative to complete mineralization of hydrophobic organic contaminants in soil. In this work, the potential of surfactants on the remediation of contaminated soil in an *ex situ* approach is reviewed with considerations given to the practical aspects of field components.

**Keywords:** surfactant, NAPL, vadose zone, bioremediation, bioreactors, CMC, hydrophobic, soil

© 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. © 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
