3d8d13581898e639443-b09 20231018064851507 beie:beie director@blueeyesintelligence.org WEB-FORM International Journal of Innovative Technology and Exploring Engineering IJITEE 22783075 10.35940/ijitee https://www.ijitee.org/ 10 30 2023 12 11 Department of Petroleum Engineering, Delta State University of Science and Technology Ozoro, Nigeria. P. N. Onwuachi-Iheagwara https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6878-1817 This paper investigates effects of re-occurring oil spillages on cocoyam, Colocasia esculenta (L.). It studies changes in petiole lengths, leaf blades, chlorophyll concentrations in leaves, and PAH and BTEX concentrations in tubers for three generations under diverse conditions. 8 10-gallon grow bags were used: Grow bags 5–8 were treated with a controlled quantity (4 L/cubic metre) of liquid crude hydrocarbon in the months of June 2019–2021; with 2 replications, after a 2-3-day interval within a week. In grow bags 3, 4, 7, and 8, poultry manure were applied once in 2 months after small seedlings emerged from soil surfaces. Grow bags 1 and 2, 3, and 4 served as “controls” for non-contaminated growth. Grow bags 7 and 8 were treated with hydrocarbons and poultry manure. In the first generation, coco yams planted in grow bags 7-8 showed growth responses (average values of 1.04 m, 51 cm, 4.45 mg/g for petiole length, leaf blade length, and chlorophyll concentration, respectively) very similar to coco yams planted in pristine soil with poultry manure with average values of 1.00 m, 50 cm, 3.45 mg/g. The cocoyams planted in pristine organic rich soils showed similar response with or without fertilizers (average values of 0.98 m, 48 cm 1.83mg/g and 1.00m, 50 cm, 3.45mg/g) with progressively smaller leaves as generation increases. The cocoyams in hydrocarbon impacted soils generally perform poorer than uncontaminated soil with or without poultry manure by the second and third generation. Poultry manure on soils with re-occurring hydrocarbon contamination exacerbates soil weakening. Mean PAH and mean BTEX concentrations in tubers were 0.001-0.0035 mg/kg and <0.001mg/kg respectively. Cocoyams are not strong BTEX bioactive scavenger but gradually became more concentrated in PAH. 10 30 2023 29 36 CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 10.35940/BEIESP.CrossMarkPolicy www.ijitee.org true International Journal of Innovative Technology and Exploring Engineering (IJITEE) No financial support or any kind of funds, grants, or financial support received. There is no conflicts of interest to the best of my knowledge. The article does not require ethical approval and consent to participate. Not relevant. I am only the sole author of the article. 10.35940/ijitee.L9741.10121123 https://www.ijitee.org/portfolio-item/L974111121223/