BIODEGRADATION OF XENOBIOTICS IN A FIXED-BED REACTOR

The specific example of an at-source biological wastewater treatment h as been elaborated and developed. A two-phase fixed-bed bioreactor sys tem was tested for its efficiency using phenol as a test substance and then, the degradation of sodium anthraquinone-2-sulfonate (SAS) was s tudied and performed. The continuous aerobic degradation of phenol or SAS as the sole source of carbon was investigated. For SAS degradation with an immobilized mixed bacterial culture, industrial activated slu dge was used as inoculum, while for phenol a domestic activated sludge from a municipal wastewater treatment plant and activated Actizym-slu dge prepared with Actizym(R) powder were applied. In our laboratory fi xed bed reactor system the adapted mixed culture was able to degrade u p to 0.17 g L-1 h-1 of SAS and 0.28 g L-1 h-1 of phenol at dilution ra tes of 0.149 h-1 and 0.059 h-1, respectively. The removal efficiency o f our two-phase continuous bioreactor system was about 99% of primary and 90% of ultimate SAS degradation. In the adapted bacterial culture degrading SAS, pure bacterial strains were isolated and identified; th ree were gram negative and six were gram positive.