Use of a fungal bioreactor as a pretreatment or post-treatment step for continuous decolorisation of dyes

A continuous decolorisation system is proposed as a pretreatment or post-tr eatment step in an integrated treatment system, combining the use of fungi and anaerobic bacteria. The system consisted of a pulsing packed-bed biorea ctor operating with white-rot fungi. This methodology was effective to achi eve high decolorisation of a coloured compound, the polyanthraquinone dye P oly R-478, which was degraded up to percentages exceeding 70%. Moreover, a stable operation was maintained for an extended period of time (more than 1 00 days). The proposed system deserves consideration as a combined bacteria l-fungal system to be applied in decolorisation and possibly detoxification of industrial coloured effluents. (C) 1999 IAWQ Published by Elsevier Scie nce Ltd. All rights reserved.