Premium
Bioremediation of crude oil‐contaminated soil by hydrocarbon‐degrading microorganisms immobilized on humic acid‐modified biofuel ash
Author(s) -
Wang Xiaoling,
Zheng Jin,
Han Zhantao,
Chen Hongkun
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of chemical technology and biotechnology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.64
H-Index - 117
eISSN - 1097-4660
pISSN - 0268-2575
DOI - 10.1002/jctb.5969
Subject(s) - bioremediation , environmental remediation , microorganism , biodegradation , soil contamination , environmental chemistry , environmental science , biofuel , biomass (ecology) , petroleum , chemistry , total petroleum hydrocarbon , contamination , pulp and paper industry , waste management , soil water , agronomy , bacteria , soil science , biology , ecology , genetics , organic chemistry , engineering
Abstract Background Soil contamination with petroleum has long been a major environmental problem. Many methods have been developed for its remediation, including bioremediation, one of the most applied procedures. The biodegradation rate of bioremediation depends on the soil environment and can be enhanced by microorganism immobilization. Here, a modified biofuel ash was proposed as a new highly efficient and inexpensive immobilization carrier and tested experimentally in soil systems. Results The degradation rate of petroleum hydrocarbon in soil by inoculated microorganisms immobilized on humic acid‐modified biofuel ash reached up to 47.8% during 60 days, which was twice as high as that by free microorganisms. In treatments with immobilized microbes, n ‐alkanes with C 28 and C 31–34 were not detected and the degradation rates of C 17–19 were 70.6% (unsterilized soil) and 54.2% (sterilized soil). The change in enzymatic activity reflected the basic respiration rate: it gradually increased in the pre‐remediation stage, then decreased, and finally stabilized. Microorganism immobilization carriers had no significant contribution to microbial diversity in unsterilized soil, but they increased in sterilized soil. Conclusions Humic acid‐modified biofuel ash inoculated with microorganisms improves the degradability of petroleum and biodiversity in soil without microbes and, through the application of biofuel ash, reuses power plant waste. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry