The effect of soil moisture and oxygen content on naphthalene biodegradation - Time series geochemistry data from an incubation experiment

Biodegradation is a key process contributing to the natural attenuation and remediation of petroleum hydrocarbons (PHCs) in soils and groundwater, but the rates and pathways of PHC biodegradation depend on various environmental factors including soil moisture. Soil moisture exerts an important control on porewater dissolved O2 availability and solute transport, and by extension, on microbial biodegradation activity. To investigate the effect of soil moisture and oxygen availability on naphthalene biodegradation rates, we performed a microcosm incubation experiment under soil moisture conditions ranging from 60% to 100% water-filled pore space (WFPS), with oxic or anoxic headspace conditions, at a constant temperature of 25°C. Naphthalene-spiked soil microcosms were incubated for 44 days and sampled weekly. Time series data were generated for headspace gas concentrations, porewater chemistry, and total soil naphthalene concentrations, which are included in this dataset. Results and findings from analysis of this data are reported in Naphthalene biodegradation kinetics under variable soil moisture and oxygen (pending submission, DOI: TBD).