KINETICS OF PHTHALIC-ACID ESTER DEGRADATION BY ACCLIMATED ACTIVATED-SLUDGE

Activated sludge obtained from a coke-plant wastewater treatment plant was acclimated and used as seeding microbes to investigate the kineti cs of biodegradation of di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP), one of the most fr equently identified phthalic acid esters in diverse environments and t he most widely used plasticizer in China. DBP biodegradation conformed to the first-order model with respect to its concentration and the ra te constant was independent of the initial concentration when the init ial DBP concentration was less than 200 mg/litre. (C) 1997 Elsevier Sc ience Ltd.