Contaminant interactions with geosorbent organic matter: Insights drawn from polymer sciences

This is a state-of-science review of interrelationships between the sorptio n/desorption behaviors and chemical structures of natural organic matter MO M) matrices associated with soils, sediments and aquifer materials. It iden tifies similarities between these behavior-property interrelationships for natural geosorbents and those for synthetic organic polymers. It then invok es, with appropriate restrictions and modifications. several structure-func tion relationships that have been developed for synthetic polymers to expla in the behavior of NOM matrices with respect to the sorption and desorption of hydrophobic organic contaminants (HOCs). Previous research regarding HO C sorption and desorption by different types of NOM and by synthetic polyme rs is summarized, and research requirements for further refinement of the N OM-polymer analogy are examined. The discussion focuses on structural and c ompositional heterogeneities that exist at the particle and aggregate scale , a scale at which homogeneity is commonly, and often improperly, assumed i n the development of contaminant fate and transport models. (C) 2001 Elsevi er Science Ltd. All rights reserved.