Abstract
In the present study, a new biofiltration system involving a selective microbial strain isolated from aerated municipal sewage water attached with coir as packing material was developed for toluene degradation. The selected fungal isolate was identified as Trichoderma asperellum by 16S ribosomal RNA (16S rRNA) sequencing method, and pylogenetic tree was constructed using BLASTn search. Effect of various factors on growth and toluene degradation by newly isolated T. asperellum was studied in batch studies, and the optimum conditions were found to be pH 7.0, temperature 30 °C, and initial toluene concentration 1.5 (v/v)%. Continuous removal of gaseous toluene was monitored in upflow packed bed reactor (UFPBR) using T. asperellum. Effect of various parameters like column height, flow rate, and the inlet toluene concentration were studied to evaluate the performance of the biofilter. The maximum elimination capacity (257 g m−3 h−1) was obtained with the packing height of 100 cm with the empty bed residence time of 5 min. Under these optimum conditions, the T. asperellum showed better toluene removal efficiency. Kinetic models have been developed for toluene degradation by T. asperellum using macrokinetic approach of the plug flow model incorporated with Monod model.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Explore related subjects
Discover the latest articles and news from researchers in related subjects, suggested using machine learning.References
Berenjian A, Chan N, Malmiri HJ (2012) Volatile organic compounds removal methods: a review. Am J Biochem Biotechnol 8:220–229
Chunping Y, Guanlong Y, Guangming Z, Haining Y, Fayuan C, Congying J (2011) Performance of biotricking filters packed with structured or cubic polyurethane sponges for VOC removal. J Environ Sci 23:1325–1333
Daugulis AJ, Boudreau NG (2003) Removal and destruction of high concentrations of gaseous toluene in a two-phase partitioning bioreactor by Alcaligenes xylosoxidans. Biotechnol Lett 25:1421–1424
Deshusses MA, Johnson AT, Leson G (1999) Biofilteration of high loads of ethyl acetate in the presence of toluene. J Air Waste Manage Assoc 49:973–979
Dorado AD, Lafuente FJ, Gabriel D, Gamisans X (2010) A comparative study based on physical characteristics of suitable packing materials in biofiltration. Environ Technol 31:193–204
Eszenyiova A, Bilska V, Rajnohova V (2001) Removal of VOC from waste gases by biofiltration technology. Pet Coal 43:22–26
Fu Y, Shao L, Liu H, Tong L, Liu H (2011) Ethylene removal evaluation and bacterial community analysis of vermicompost as biofilter material. J Hazard Mater 192:658–666
Ghorbani SF, Golbabaei F, Hamedi J, Mahjub H, Darabi HR, Shahtaheri SJ (2010) Treatment of benzene, toluene and xylene contaminated air in a bioactive foam emulsion reactor. Chin J Chem Eng 18:113–121
Gopinath M, Dhanasekar R (2012) Microbial degradation of toluene. Afr J Biotechnol 11:16210–16219
Ines GP, Ortiz I, Hernandez S, Revah S (2008) Biofiltration of BTEX by the fungus Paecilomyces variotii. Int Biodeterior Biodegradation 62:442–447
Khan FI, Ghoshal AK (2000) Removal of Volatile Organic Compounds from polluted air – Review. J Loss Prevent Proc Ind 13:527–545
Kim BJ, Zhu X, Suidan M, Yang C (2002) An innovative biofilter for treating VOCs and odors in air emissions: A new concept of biofiltration. Proceed Clean Air Sym San Diego, CA
Liu D, Coloe S, Baird R, Pedersen J (2000) Rapid mini preparation for fungal DNA for PCR. J Clin Microbiol 38:471
Maestre JP, Gamisans X, Gabriel D, Lafuente J (2007) Fungal biofilters for toluene biofiltration: evaluation of the performance with four packing materials under different operating conditions. Chemosphere 67:684–692
Marban G, Solis TV, Fuertes AB (2006) Modeling the breakthrough behavior of an activated carbon fiber monolith in n-butane adsorption from diluted streams. Chem Eng Sci 61:4762–4772
Mathur AK, Majumder CB (2008) Biofiltration and Kinetic aspects of a biotrickling filter for the removal of paint solvent mixture laden air stream. J Hazard Mater 152:1027–1036
Ortiz I, Revah S, Auria R (2003) Effects of packing material on the biofilteration of benzene, toluene and xylene vapors. Environ Technol 24:265–275
Pakamas C, Yada N, Charun B (2005) Biofilteration of air contaminated with methanol and toluene. Songklanakarin J Sci Technol 27:761–773
Qi B, Moe WM (2006) Performance of low pH biofilters treating a paint solvent mixture: continuous and intermittent loading. J Hazard Mater 135:303–310
Raquel L, Elisa R, Garcia-Encina PA, Raul MA (2011) Comparative assessment of biofiltration and activated sludge diffusion for odour abatement. J Hazard Mater 190:622–630
Rene ER, Murthy DVS, Swaminathan T (2009) Treatment of benzene vapors from contaminated air stream in a laboratory- scale compost biofilter. Maced J Chem Chem Eng 28:119–123
Sambrook J, Fritsch EF, Maniatis T (1989) Molecular cloning: A laboratory Manual, 2nd edn. Cold Spring Harbour Laboratory Press, New York
Seyed MZ, Roueinhallad J, Bahram N (2011) Removal of toluene vapors using a fungal biofilter under intermittent loading. Proc Saf Environ Protect 89:8–14
Shim H, Shin EB, Yang ST (2002) A Continuous fibrous-bed bioreactor for BTEX biodegradation by a co-culture of Pseudomonas putida and Pseudomonas fluorescens. Adv Environ Res 7:203–216
Singh RS, Rai BN, Upadhyay SN (2010) Removal of toluene vapour from air stream using a biofilter packed with polyurethane foam. Proc Saf Environ Protect 88:366–371
Thomson JD, Gibson TJ, Plewniak F, Jeanmougin F, Higgins DG (1997) The Clustal X windows interface: Flexible strategies for multiple sequence alignment aided by quality analysis tools. Nucleic Acid Res 25:4876–4882
van Groenestijn JW, van Heiningen WNM, Kraakman NJR (2001) Biofilters based on the action of fungi. Water Sci Technol 44:227–232
Weisburg WG, Barns SM, Pelletier DA, Lane DJ (1991) 16 s ribosomal DNA amplification for phylogenetic study. J Bacteriol 173:697–703
World Health Organization (2000) Air quality guidelines for Europe, 2nd edn. WHO Regional Publications, Copenhagen, World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe
Zilli M, Guarino C, Daffonchio D, Borin S, Converti A (2005) Laboratory-scale experiments with a powdered compost biofilter treating benzene-polluted air. Process Biochem 40:2035–2043
Acknowledgments
The first author wishes to thank the Management and Department of Biotechnology, Karpaga Vinayaga College of Engineering and Technology, Chennai, for providing facilities to carry out this work. Also thank the Department of Chemical Engineering, Annamalai University for constant support, guidance and encouragement for performing this research work.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Responsible editor: Angeles Blanco
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Gopinath, M., Mohanapriya, C., Sivakumar, K. et al. Biodegradation of toluene vapor in coir based upflow packed bed reactor by Trichoderma asperellum isolate. Environ Sci Pollut Res 23, 4129–4137 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-4550-3
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-4550-3