Mechanisms of attenuation of metal availability in in situ remediation treatments.

One suite of in situ technologies for remediating metal contaminated soils involves the addition of reactive materials which lower metal availability. Until now it has been difficult to assess whether the amendment induced decrease in metal availability is due simply to increased sorption of the metal or whether it is the result of surface precipitation or other fixation mechanisms. This has made it difficult to predict the long-term stability of such remedial treatments. Using an isotopic dilution technique coupled with a stepwise acidification treatment, we examined changes in the labile pool of Cd and Zn in a polluted soil amended with either CaCO3, KH2PO4, red mud, or a kaolin byproduct. Fixation of both Cd and Zn was greatest in the KH2PO4 treated soil. The mode of fixation in this treatment was also found to be resistant to soil acidification. The results allowed a clear distinction between three classes of attenuation mechanisms which are hypothesized to increase in their resilience to environmental change as follows: reversible sorption < irreversible "fixation" at constant pH < irreversible "fixation" across a range of pH.