Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Transport of E. coli in saturated and unsaturated porous media: effect of physiological state and substrate availability

  • Published:
Sādhanā Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Saturated and unsaturated sand and soil column experiments were conducted to study the complex interaction between the effects of biological and hydrological factors on the transport of bacteria through a porous medium. These experiments were conducted with continuous input of bacteria and substrate at the inlet to reflect the groundwater contamination caused by leaking septic tanks and leach pits. Experiments were conducted with metabolically active and inactive Escherichia coli. Cell surface characteristics and batch experimental data for bacterial attachment were correlated with the transport behaviour in continuous column studies. Normalized breakthrough concentration for metabolically inactive cells (C/C 0 = 0.74 in sand) was higher than that for active cells (C/C 0 = 0.68 in sand) owing to change in cell surface characteristics. A similar trend was observed in the case of transport through soil columns. There was an increase of 29.5% in the peak C/C 0 value at the outlet when the flow velocity was increased from 0.0535 cm/h (C/C 0 = 0.61) to 0.214 cm/h (C/C 0 = 0.79) in case of sand columns. However, this difference was only 20% in case of soil columns. Peak normalized concentrations at the outlet were less in soil column as compared to those in sand column because of lesser grain size. Unlike the earlier studies with pulse input, present experiments with continuous input of metabolically active bacteria along with substrate indicated that the normalized concentration at the outlet increased with increased concentration at the inlet. It was found that unsaturated conditions led to more retention of bacteria in both sand and soil columns. In case of sand columns, the normalized concentration at the exit reduced to as much as 0.46. It was also found that the existing mathematical models based on macroscopic advection–dispersion–filtration equations could satisfactorily simulate the bacterial transport except in a case where the substrate was added to the bacteria in the column studies.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
Figure 4
Figure 5
Figure 6
Figure 7
Figure 8
Figure 9
Figure 10

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Łuczkiewicz A and Quant B 2007 Soil and groundwater fecal contamination as a result of sewage sludge land application. J. Environ. Stud. 16: 587–593

    Google Scholar 

  2. USAID 2010 A rapid assessment of septage management in Asia USAID. Bangkok: Regional Development Mission for Asia, p. 127

    Google Scholar 

  3. Valencia R den Hamer D, Komboi J, Lubberding H J and Gijzen H J 2009 Alternative treatment for septic tank sludge: co-digestion with municipal solid waste in bioreactor landfill simulation. J. Environ. Manag. 90(2): 940–945

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Laluraj C M and Gopinath G 2015 Assessment on seasonal variation of groundwater quality of phreatic aquifers. A river basin system. Environ. Monitor. Assess. 117(1–3): 145–157

    Google Scholar 

  5. Sunderrajan K 2011 On-site sanitation and groundwater contamination: a policy and technical review. India: INREM, pp. 2–4

    Google Scholar 

  6. Foppen J W A and Schijven J F 2006 Evaluation of data from the literature on the transport and survival of Escherichia coli and thermotolerant coliforms in aquifers under saturated conditions. Water Res. 40: 401–426

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Keller A A and Auset M 2007 A review of visualization techniques of biocolloid transport processes at the pore scale under saturated and unsaturated conditions. Adv. Water Resour. 30: 1392–1407

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Jansen S, Vereecken H and Klumpp E 2010 On the role of metabolic activity on the transport and deposition of Pseuomonas fluorescens in saturated porous media. Water Res. 44(4): 1288–1296

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Sanin F D and Bryers J D 2003 Effect of starvation on the adhesive properties of xenobiotic degrading bacteria. Process Biochem. 38: 909–914

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Li J, Zhao X, Tian X, Li J, Sjollema J and Wang A 2015 Retention in treated wastewater affects survival and deposition of Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli in Sand Columns. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 81(6): 2199–2205

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Xu S, Liao Q and Saiers J E 2007 Straining of non-spherical colloids in saturated porous media. Environ. Sci. Technol. 42(3): 771–778

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Lutterodt G, Foppen J W A and Uhlenbrook S 2014 Escherichia coli strains harvested from springs in Kampala, Uganda: cell characterization and transport in saturated porous media. Hydrol. Process 28: 1973–1988

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Sen T K 2010 Processes in pathogenic biocolloidal contaminants transport in saturated and unsaturated porous media: a review. Water Air Soil Pollut. 216(1–4): 239–256

    Google Scholar 

  14. Bitton G, Lahav N and Henis Y 1974 Movement and retention of Klebsiella aerogenes in soil columns. Plant Soil 40: 373–380

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Tan Y, Bond W J and Griffin D M 1992 Transport of bacteria during unsteady unsaturated soil water flow. Soil Sci. Soc. Am. J. 56: 1331–1340

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Huysman F and Verstraete W 1993 Water-facilitated transport of bacteria in unsaturated soil columns: influence of cell surface hydrophobicity and soil properties. Soil Biol. Biochem. 25: 83–90

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Jewett D G, Logan B E, Arnold R G and Bales R C 1999 Transport of Pseudomonas fluorescens strain P17 through quartz sand columns as a function of water content. J. Contam. Hydrol. 36: 73–89

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Gargiulo G, Bradford S A, Šimůnek J, Ustohal P, Vereecken H and Klumpp E 2007 Bacteria transport and deposition under unsaturated conditions: the role of bacteria surface hydrophobicity. Vadose Zone J. 7(2): 406–419

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Powelson D K and Mills A L 1998 Water saturation and surfactant effects on bacterial transport in sand columns. Soil Sci. 163: 694–704

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Jiang S, Pang L, Buchan G D, Simůnek J, Noonan M J and Close M E 2010 Modeling water flow and bacterial transport in undisturbed lysimeters under irrigations of dairy shed effluent and water using HYDRUS-1D. Water Res. 44(4): 1050–1061

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Chen G and Walker S L 2012 Fecal indicator bacteria transport and deposition in saturated and unsaturated porous media. Environ. Sci. Technol. 46(16): 8782–8790

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Rao S M, Sekhar M and Raghuveer Rao P 2013 Impact of pit-toilet leachate on groundwater chemistry and role of vadose zone in removal of nitrate and E. coli pollutants in Kolar District, Karnataka, India. Environ. Earth Sci. 68(4): 927–938

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. DeNovio N M, Saiers J M and Ryan J N 2004 Colloid movement in unsaturated porous media: recent advances and future direction. Vadose Zone J. 3: 338–351

    Google Scholar 

  24. Auset M, Keller A A, Brissaud F and Lazarova V 2005 Intermittent filtration of bacteria and colloids at pore and column scales. Water Resour. Res. 41. doi:10.1029/2004WR003611

  25. Bradford S A and Torkzaban S 2008 Colloid transport and retention in unsaturated porous media: a review of interface, collector, and pore-scale processed and models. Vadose Zone J. 7: 667–681

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Bradford S A, Wang Y, Kim H, Torkzaban S and Šimůnek J 2014 Modeling microorganism transport and survival in the subsurface. J. Environ. Q. 43: 421–440

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Lenhart J J and Saiers J E 2002 Transport of silica colloids through unsaturated porous media: experimental results and model comparisons. Environ. Sci. Technol. 36: 769–777

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. IS 2720. IS 2720-22: Methods of test for soils. New Delhi, India: Bureau of Indian Standards

  29. IS 2720.1980 IS 2720-3-1: Methods of test for soils. New Delhi, India: Bureau of Indian Standards

  30. Rosenberg M, Gutnick D and Rosenberg E 1980 Adherence of bacteria to hydrocarbons: a simple method for measuring cell-surface hydrophobicity. FEMS Microbiol. 9: 29–33

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Dubois M, Gill K A, Hamilton J K, Rebers P A and Smith F 1958 Colorimetric method for determination of sugar and related substances. J. Anal. Chem. 28: 350–356

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Datta A and Philip L 2012 Biodegradation of volatile organic compounds from paint industries. Appl. Biochem. Biotechnol. 167(3): 564–580

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Somasundaram V, Philip L and Bhallamudi S M 2011 Laboratory scale column studies on transport and biotransformation of Cr (VI) through porous media in presence of CRB, SRB and IRB. Chem. Eng. J. 171(2): 572–581

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Lowry O H, Rosenbrough N J, Farr A L and Randall R J 1951 Protein measurement with the folin phenol reagent. J. Biol. Chem. 193: 265–275

    Google Scholar 

  35. Bradford S A, Simunek J, Bettahar M, van Genuchten M Th and Yates S R 2003 Modeling colloid attachment, straining, and exclusion in saturated porous media. Environ. Sci. Technol. 37: 2242–2250

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Mishra C, Manikandan S T, Bhallamudi S M and Panday S 2012 Dynamic subtiming-based implicit nonoscillating scheme for contaminant transport modelling. J. Hydrol. Eng. 17: 694–703

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Šimunek J, van Genuchten M Th and Šejna M 2005 The HYDRUS-1D software package for simulating the one-dimensional movement of water, heat, and multiple solutes in variably saturated media. Version 3.0, HYDRUS Software Series 1, Department of Environmental Sciences, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA Department of Environmental Sciences, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA 270

  38. Gargiulo G, Bradford S A, Simunek J, Ustohal P, Vereeckan H and Klumpp E 2007 Transport and deposition of metabolically active and stationary phase Deinococcus radiodurans in unsaturated porous media. Environ. Sci. Technol. 41: 1265–1271

    Article  Google Scholar 

  39. Guber A K, Shelton D R and Pachepsky Y A 2005 Effect of manure on Escherichia coli attachment to soil. J. Environ. Q. 34: 2086–2089

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Nola M, Njiné T, Boutin C, Servais P, Messouli M, Bidjeck L M N, Monkiedje A, Zébazé Togouet S H and Kemka N 2005 Sorption kinetics of Escherichia coli and Salmonella sp on two soil layers associated with a groundwater table in Yaounde, Cameroon (Central Africa). Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2: 447–455

    Article  Google Scholar 

  41. Guzman J A, Fox G A and Penn C A 2012 Sorption of Escherichia coli in agricultural soils influenced by swine manure constituents. Am. Soc. Agric. Biol. Eng. 55: 161–71

    Google Scholar 

  42. Zhong H, Jiang Y, Zeng G, Liu Z, Liu L, Liu Y, Yang X, Laia M and He Y 2015 Effect of low-concentration rhamnolipid on adsorption of Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 9027 on hydrophilic and hydrophobic surfaces. J. Hazard. Mater. 285: 383–388

    Article  Google Scholar 

  43. Poccia M E, Beccaria A J and Dondo R G 2014 Modeling the microbial growth of two Escherichia coli strains in a multi-substrate environment. Braz. J. Chem. Eng. 31(2): 347–354

    Article  Google Scholar 

  44. Schumacher J G 2002 Transport, and sources of fecal bacteria in streams and survival in land-applied poultry litter in the Upper Shoal Creek Basin, Southwestern Missouri U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report, vol. 3

  45. Senn H, Lendenmann U, Snozzi M, Hamer G and Egli T 1994 The growth of Escherichia coli in glucose-limited chemostat cultures: a re-examination of the kinetics. Biochem. Biophys. Acta 1210(3): 424–436

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. Walczak J J, Wang L, Bardy S L, Feriancikova L, Li J and Xu S 2012 The effects of starvation on the transport of Escherichia coli in saturated porous media are dependent on pH and ionic strength. Colloids Surf. B Biointerfaces 90: 129–136

    Article  Google Scholar 

  47. Weiss T H, Mills A L, Hornberger G M and Herman J S 1995 Effect of bacterial cell shape on transport of bacteria in porous media. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 29: 1737–1740

    Google Scholar 

  48. Chilton J and Seiler K P 2006 Groundwater occurrence and hydrogeological environments. In: Schmoll O (ed.) Protecting groundwater for health: managing the quality of drinking-water sources. London International Water Association, pp. 21–47

  49. Stevik T K, Kari A, Ausland G and Hanssen J F 2004 Retention and removal of pathogenic bacteria in wastewater percolating through porous media: a review. Water Res. 38: 1355–1367

    Article  Google Scholar 

  50. Zhuang J, Tyner J S and Perfect E 2009 Colloid transport and remobilization in unsaturated porous media during transient flow. J. Hydrol. 377: 112–119

    Article  Google Scholar 

  51. Cheng T and Saiers J E 2009 Mobilization and transport of in situ colloids during drainage and imbibition of partially saturated sediments. Water Resour. Res. 45. doi:10.1029/2008WR007494

  52. McGraw M A and Kaplan D I 1997 Colloid suspension stability and transport through unsaturated porous media Report. PNNL-11565, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington

  53. Laegdsmand M, Jonge L W de and Moldrup P 2005 Leaching of colloids and dissolved organic matter from columns packed with natural soil aggregates. Soil Sci. 170: 13–27

    Article  Google Scholar 

  54. Fallah M, Shabanpor M and Ebrahimi S 2015 Evaluation of petroleum impacts on some properties of loamy sand soil with the main focus on hydraulic properties. Environ. Earth Sci. 74: 4751–4762

    Article  Google Scholar 

  55. Khamehchiyan M, Charkhabi A H and Tajik M 2007 Effects of crude oil contamination on geotechnical properties of clayey and sandy soils. Eng. Geol. 89: 220–229

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai, 600036, India

    G Madumathi, Ligy Philip & S Murty Bhallamudi

Authors
  1. G Madumathi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Ligy Philip
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. S Murty Bhallamudi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to S Murty Bhallamudi.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary material 1 (DOCX 675 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Madumathi, G., Philip, L. & Bhallamudi, S.M. Transport of E. coli in saturated and unsaturated porous media: effect of physiological state and substrate availability. Sādhanā 42, 1007–1024 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12046-017-0650-8

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12046-017-0650-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation