PROBLEMS OF IDENTIFYING PHENOLIC-COMPOUNDS DURING THE MICROBIAL-DEGRADATION OF OLIVE MILL WASTE-WATER

The main objectives of the presented Spanish-German collaboration are the purification of alpechin by biodegrading phenolic compounds and th e investigation of metabolites during fermentation prior to its safe d isposal. In addition to 12 well-known compounds, 3,4-dihydroxyphenylgl ycol was also identified in untreated Spanish and Italian alpechin sam ples using a GC/MS method. The qualitative composition of the Italian and Spanish samples differ. First results of degradation tests of refe rence substances are reported: Arthrobacter is capable of completely t ransforming added tyrosol to the corresponding 4-hydroxyphenylacetic a cid and after 139h of fermentation no traces of tyrosol can be identif ied. In contrast, only traces of phenylacetic acid are produced by Bac illus pumilus after 139h of fermentation of tyrosol. (C) 1997 Publishe d by Elsevier Science Limited.