Potencial do uso da compostagem como meio de diminuição da toxicidade de derivados do petróleo.

Abstract

There is great concern about the environmental impacts caused by anthropogenic practices such as soil contamination caused by a number of factors, including oil spills. This work proposes the use of composting as a possibility of reducing the toxicity of diesel oil and lubricating oil in the soil, since this is an economically feasible method. The composting system used contained dried and ground forage palm rafts used for the adsorption of lubricating oil and diesel oil, litter, coffee grounds, crushed eggshells and goat manure. The toxicity reduction was evaluated by means of ecotoxicological tests with earthworms and lettuce seeds (Lactuca sativa L). During the composting process it was found that the addition of palm rackets that adsorbed diesel oil and lubricating oil that stimulated the microbial growth. It was still verified that during the process there was the production of biosurfactants. The final compound had odor and texture of soil fertilized, similar to the control compound that had no addition of palm containing petroleum derivatives. Ecotoxicological tests indicated that the treatment employed was able to reduce the toxicity of the lubricating oil, so that the final compound presented itself as organic matter that can be used as an organic fertilizer.