RESPONSES OF SOME GRASS SPECIES TO DIESEL FUEL CONTAMINATED SOIL

Abstract

Contamination of soil with petroleum products especially diesel fuel has been a major cause of concern. Automated gas oil (AGO) i.e. Diesel fuel is a complex mixture of petroleum hydrocarbons containing volatile, low molecule weight alkanes which are potentially phytotoxic, tonaphthalenes which may interfere with normal plant development. Two concentrations of diesel fuel namely 5g and 10g were used to contaminate soil. Thus six species of the family Poaceae namely Sorghum bicolor, Sorghum vulgare, Zea mays, Pennisetum glaucum, Phaseolus vulgaris and Triticum aestivum were used to phytoremediate the polluted soil. Phytoremediation is an innovative technology that uses plants to remove environmental contaminants in the growth substrate through physical, chemical or biological processes. Decrease in levels of diesel was accompanied by better germination and growth. Initially, seed germination was low as compared to control but it improved steadily in experimental plants. Among the six species studied, S. bicolor exhibited a moderate germination, plant height and leaf length at 5% and 10% diesel contaminations when compared to the control, thus it can be used for phytoremediation of diesel contaminated soils.