Hydrogen peroxide decomposition and trichloroethylene (TCE) oxidation kinetics were studied through batch slurry experiments, performed on two TCE contaminated soils (a sandy soil and a clay soil), characterized by different texture and organic fraction; besides, experiments were also performed on sandy soil columns, in order to more closely reproduce the typical conditions of an in situ treatment. The results of the batch tests indicated that hydrogen peroxide lifetime was correlated to the oxidation efficiency; namely, complete TCE oxidation was achieved only for the conditions characterized by longer hydrogen peroxide lifetime, that was obtained by addition of a proper stabilizer (KH2PO4). The soil properties were also observed to influence both hydrogen peroxide decomposition and TCE oxidation kinetics, probably as a consequence of the different TOC content. The soil column experiments, performed on 10, 20, and 30 cm long columns, indicated that hydrogen peroxide decomposition, which was almost complete at 30 cm depth, was on the contrary negligible when the stabilizer was added. In agreement with this observation, the performance of TCE oxidation were greatly improved in the latter case. Based upon the collected results, it can be concluded that hydrogen peroxide experiments may be useful, at least in the first screening phase of the design activity, for selecting, among the different operating conditions, those that may be potentially more effective for the oxidation treatment. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.