Preliminary test of kerosene contaminated soil on Vetiveria zizanioides

Kerosene is one of the light fractions of petroleum distillation often used as a solvent in asphalt processing. Kerosene has the potential to be a source of environmental contaminants if there is a spill, leakage of the storage system, or waste disposal that is not managed properly. Soil contaminated with kerosene contains hydrocarbons that are toxic and can damage ecological functions. One potential approach in handling contamination using the remediation method is restoring environmental quality by utilizing plants. This study aims to determine the level of resistance of Vetiveria zizanioides plants to kerosene contamination through a preliminary Range Finding Test (RFT) as an initial step before the phytoremediation process takes place on soil. Plants were planted in sandy soil media contaminated kerosene with concentration variations of 0%, 5%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% v/v. Observations were conducted for seven days considering physiological conditions, plant responses, supporting parameters pH, temperature, and humidity. The test results showed that Vetiveria zizanioides plants were able to survive without showing symptoms of physical damage or necrosis at 5% (v/v). These findings indicate that Vetiveria zizanioides has the potential to be phytoremediation agent to handle kerosene-contaminated soil.