Abstract
The influence of substrate concentration, nutrients and temperature on the toluene elimination capacity of soil was investigated using a lab scale, differential biofilter reactor. For toluene concentration studies, a maximum elimination capacity of 146.3 ± 1.4 g m−3 h−1 was observed at a residual toluene concentration of 146.7 ± 0.8 ppm. Increasing the residual toluene concentration further decreased the elimination capacity indicating substrate inhibition. The inhibition was irreversible suggesting a change in the toluene degrading strains after exposure to toluene concentrations above 150 ppm. The toluene degraders present in the soil were nitrogen limited, as nitrate addition increased the biodegradation activity 3.5-fold. Other nutrients tested in this system (Ca, Fe, S, P) showed no increase in elimination capacity. The temperature studies from 20 to 50 °C showed that the activity of the toluene degraders peaked at 45 °C.
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Baskaran, S. et al. (2016). Influence of Substrate Concentration, Nutrients and Temperature on the Biodegradation of Toluene in a Differential Biofilter Reactor. In: B. D., P., Gummadi, S., Vadlani, P. (eds) Biotechnology and Biochemical Engineering. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-1920-3_22
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-1920-3_22
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