Investigation on the Effects of Hydrocarbon Spillage on Soil Properties

Every year, several onshore and offshore oil spills occur around the world, and these oil spills contaminate the soil. The physical and mechanical property of the ground gets altered as a result of contamination. Increasing petroleum exploration refining and other allied industrial activities have led to the wide scale contamination of soil. Amongst diesel and petrol, the consumption of diesel is higher. Therefore, diesel was selected as the pollutant and its effect on engineering properties of soil was studied. The present study focuses on evaluation of uncontaminated and contaminated soil with different concentration of diesel (8%,12%,16%,20% and at fully saturation by dry weight of the soil) were determined on samples of lateritic soil, sandy soil and clayey soil and the test results are compared to determine the effects of diesel contamination on some of the geotechnical properties. The testing included basic properties, Specific gravity, Atterberg limits, compaction, direct shear, and triaxial test and permeability tests. The results showed that the diesel contaminated soil samples have adverse effects on the geotechnical properties of the soil. The liquid limit, plastic limit and of the soil decreased as its diesel content increased. Strength and permeability of the soil decreased as its diesel content increased. If the foundation design for structures to be erected on hydrocarbon polluted soil does not consider the reduction in angle of internal friction and shear strength, this will ultimately affect the stability of shallow foundations, slopes, and other structures. Keywords— Diesel; Contaminated soil; Geotechnical properties; Laboratory studies;; Shear strength parameters