The influence of the association patterns of phosphorus-substrates and xylene-substrates on the degradation of xylenes in an alluvial aquifer

The association patterns of xylene and of total phosphorus with sediment con- stituents in an alluvial aquifer consisting of clays and sands which had been contami- nated by a spill of technical grade xylene were investigated with the aim of assessing the dependence of in situ xylene degradation on the P-availability. The investigated alluvial sediments of the Maki{ Plain (Sava river alluvion, Quaternary age, Serbia and Mon- tenegro) are relatively poor in P. The most reliable associations were proposed by ana- lyzing the quality of the correlations of xylene- and of P-contents with 32 sediment char- acteristics. The association patterns depend on the mineralogical and granulometrical composition of sediments, the structural characteristics of the organic matter (N/C-ratio) and the redox-conditions. Differing association patterns in the clays and the sand had been developed, and these characteristics influence the intrinsic xylene degradation. The main proof for the occurrence of xylene degradation is the percentul share of bacte- ria which oxidize xylene as a single carbon-source.