Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Kinetics of biodegradation of diesel fuel by enriched microbial consortia from polluted soils

  • Review
  • Published:
International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Three microbial consortia were isolated from three polluted soils located at an oil refinery and acclimated to grow on diesel fuel as the sole carbon source. Batch experiments were then conducted with the three consortia to study the kinetics of diesel biodegradation. The effects of temperature (25, 30 and 35 °C) and diesel concentration (0.5, 1 and 3 %) on the biodegradation of diesel were analysed. Several species were identified in the acclimated microbial consortia, and some of them appeared in more than one consortium. Thermal inhibition was observed at 35 °C. In the rest of experiments, over 80 % of the substrate was degraded after 40 h of treatment. These results proved the good feasibility of using the polluted sites as sources of mixed consortia for hydrocarbon degradation. However, diesel degradation efficiencies and rates were very similar, suggesting that the acclimation process produced mixed consortia with very similar characteristics; in this context, origin of the soil sample was not a decisive factor. A simple Monod-type kinetic model was used to simulate the biodegradation process, and accurate results were obtained. The μ max values were between 0.17 and 0.34 h−1. The results of this study revealed that the consortia can function at high concentrations of hydrocarbons without any sign of growth inhibition, which is important for the design of bioreactors for wastewater treatment with high concentrations of fuel.

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

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Al-Saleh E, Drobiova H, Obuekwe C (2009) Predominant culturable crude oil-degrading bacteria in the coast of Kuwait. Int Biodet Biodeg 63:400–406

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • ASTM D86 (2004) Standard test method for distillation of petroleum products at atmospheric pressure: book of standards. American Society for Testing and Materials, West Conshohocken

    Google Scholar 

  • Banat IM (1995) Biosurfactants production and possible uses in microbial enhanced oil recovery and oil pollution remediation: a review. Bioresour Technol 51:1–12

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Barathi S, Vasudevan N (2001) Utilisation of petroleum hydrocarbons by Pseudomonas fluorescens isolated from a petroleum-contaminated soil. Env Int 26:413–416

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bhandari A, Surampalli RY, Champagne P, Ong SK, Tyagi RD, Lo IMC (2007) Remediation technologies for soils and ground water. American Society of Civil Engineers, Virginia

    Google Scholar 

  • Boopathy R (2000) Factors limiting bioremediation technologies. Biores Tech 74:63–67

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Britton LN (1984) Microbial degradation of aliphatic hydrocarbons. In: Gibson DT (ed) Microbial degradation of organic compounds. Marcel Dekker, Inc., New York, pp 89–129

    Google Scholar 

  • Chaineau CH, Morel J, Dupont J, Bury E, Oudot J (1999) Comparison of the fuel oil biodegradation potential of hydrocarbon-assimilating microorganism isolated from a temperate agricultural soil. Sci Total Environ 227:237–247

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Das N, Chandran P (2011) Microbial degradation of petroleum hydrocarbon contaminants: an overview. Biotechnol Res Int. doi:10.4061/2011/941810

  • Ghoshal S, Luthy RG (1998) Biodegradation kinetics of naphthalene in nonaqueous phase liquid-water mixed batch systems: comparison of model predictions and experimental results. Biotechnol Bioeng 57:356–366

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Iqbal J, Metosh-Dickey C, Portier RJ (2007) Temperature effects on bioremediation of PAHs and PCP contaminated South Louisiana soils: a laboratory mesocosm study. J Soils Sediments 7(3):153–158

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • ISO 9377-2 (2000) Water quality: determination of hydrocarbon oil index. Part 2: method using solvent extraction and gas chromatography. International Organization for Standardization, Geneva

    Google Scholar 

  • ISO-3675 (1998) Crude petroleum and liquid petroleum products-laboratory determination of density: hydrometer method. International Organization for Standardization, Geneva

    Google Scholar 

  • Juwarkar AA, Singh SK, Mudhoo A (2010) A comprehensive overview of elements in bioremediation. Rev Environ Sci Biotechnol 9:215–288

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kwapisz E, Wszelaka J, Marchut O, Bielecki S (2008) The effect of nitrate and ammonium ions on kinetics of diesel oil degradation by Gordonia alkanivorans S7. Int Biodet Biodeg 61:214–222

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lafortune I, Juteau P, Déziel E, Pépine F, Beaudet R, Villemur R (2009) Bacterial diversity of a consortium degrading high-molecular-weight polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in a two liquid phase biosystem. Microb Ecol 57(3):455–468

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lee JY, Choi YB, Kim HS (1993) Simultaneous biodegradation of toluene and p-xylene in a novel bioreactor: experimental results and mathematical analysis. Biotchnol Prog 9:46–53

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Macnaughton SJ, Stephen JR, Venosa AD, Davis GA, Chang Y, White DC (1999) Microbial population changes during bioremediation of an experimental oil spill. Appl Environ Microbiol 65(8):3566–3574

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Maila MP, Randima P, Surridge K, Dronen K, Cloete TE (2005) Evaluation of microbial diversity of different soil layers at a contaminated diesel site. Int Biodet Biodeg 55:39–44

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Margesin R, Schinner F (2001) Biodegradation and bioremediaion of hydrocarbons in extreme environments. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 56:650–663

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Márquez-Rocha FJ, Hernández-Rodriguez V, Lamela MT (2001) Biodegradation of diesel oil in soil by a microbial consortium. Water Air Soil Pollut 128:313–320

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Medina-Moreno SA, Huerta-Ochoa S, Gutiérrez-Rojas M (2005) Hydrocarbon biodegradation in oxygen-limited sequential batch reactors by consortium from weathered, oil-contaminated soil. Can J Microbiol 51:231–239

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mukherji S, Weber WJ Jr (1998) Mass transfer effects on microbial uptake of naphthalene from complex NAPLs. Biotechnol Bioeng 60:750–760

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nikakhtari H, Kumar P, Nemati M, Hill GA (2009) Biodegradation of diesel oil in a baffled roller bioreactor. J Chem Technol Biotechnol 84:525–532

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Owsianiak M, Chrzanowski L, Szulc A, Staniewski J, Olszanowski A, Olejnik-Schmidt Ak, Heipieper HJ (2009) Biodegradation of diesel/biodiesel blends by consortium of hydrocarbon degraders: effect of the type blend and the addition of biosurfactants. Bioresour Technol 100(3):1497–1500

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Paslawski JC, Headley JV, Hill GA, Nemati M (2009) Biodegradation kinetics of trans-4methyl-1-cyclohexane carboxylic acid. Biodegradation 20:125–133

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rahman KSM, Banat IM, Thahira J, Thayumanavan T, Lakshmanaperumalsamy P (2002) Bioremediation of gasoline contaminated soil by a bacterial consortium amended with poultry litter, coir pith and rhamnolipid biosurfactant. Bioresour Technol 81:25–32

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ron EZ, Rosenberg E (2001) Natural roles of biosurfactans. Environ Microbiol 3(4):229–236

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sabaté J, Viñas M, Solanas AM (2004) Laboratory-scale bioremediation experiments on hydrocarbon-contaminated soils. Int Biodet Biodeg 54:19–25

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sadouk Z, Hacene H, Tazerouti A (2008) Biosurfactants production from low cost substrate and degradation of diesel oil by a Rhodococcus strain. Oil Gas Sci Technol 63:747–753

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Schirmer M, Molson JW, Frind EO, Barker JF (2000) Biodegradation modelling of a dissolved gasoline plume applying independent laboratory and field parameters. J Contam Hydrol 46:339–374

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Senez JC (1962) Some considerations on the energetics of bacterial growth. Bacteriol Rev 26:95–107

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Torres LG, Rojas N, Bautista G, Iturbe R (2005) Effect of temperature, and surfactant′s HLB and dose over the TPH-diesel biodegradation process in aged soils. Process Biochem 40:3296–3302

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ueno A, Ito Y, Yumoto I, Okuyama H (2007) Isolation and characterization of bacteria from soil contaminated with diesel oil and the possible use of these in autochthonous bioaugmentation. World J Microbiol Biotechnol 23:1739–1745

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • van Uden N (1969) Kinetics of nutrient-limited growth. Annu Rev Microbiol 23:473–485

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vieira PA, Vieira RB, de França FP, Cardoso VL (2007) Biodegradation of effluent contaminated with diesel fuel and gasoline. J Hazard Mater 140:52–59

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Whang L-M, Liu P-WG, Ma C-C, Cheng S-S (2008) Application of biosurfactants, rhamnolopid, and surfactin for enhanced biodegradation of diesel-contaminated water and soil. J Hazard Mater 151:155–163

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Young C-C, Lin T-C, Yeh M-S, Shen F-T, Chang J-S (2005) Identification and kinetic characteristics of an indigenous diesel-degrading Gordonia alkanivorans strain. World J Microbiol Biotechnol 21:1409–1414

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Youssef M, El-Taweel GE, El-Naggar AY, El-Hawary SE, El-Meleigy MA, Ahmed SA (2010) Hydrocarbon degrading bacteria as indicator of petroleum pollution in Ismailia Canal Egypt. World Appl Sci J 8:1226–1233

    CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This research was funded under project CTM2006-03314 by the Spanish Government National Plan for Research and project PBI08-0206-7303 by the Castilla-La Mancha Regional Government. The financial support (Grant number FSE 2007/2013 PRINCET E08/005) of Alquimia Soluciones Ambientales is gratefully acknowledged.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chemical Engineering Department, Institute for Chemical and Environmental Technology (ITQUIMA), University of Castilla-La Mancha, 13071, Ciudad Real, Spain

    E. Moliterni, R. G. Jiménez-Tusset, M. Villar Rayo, F. J. Fernández & J. Villaseñor

  2. Alquimia Soluciones Ambientales S.L., C/de la Calidad 3, 13250, Daimiel (Ciudad Real), Spain

    L. Rodriguez

Authors
  1. E. Moliterni
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. R. G. Jiménez-Tusset
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. M. Villar Rayo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. L. Rodriguez
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. F. J. Fernández
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. J. Villaseñor
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to E. Moliterni.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Moliterni, E., Jiménez-Tusset, R.G., Villar Rayo, M. et al. Kinetics of biodegradation of diesel fuel by enriched microbial consortia from polluted soils. Int. J. Environ. Sci. Technol. 9, 749–758 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-012-0071-5

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-012-0071-5

Keywords

Search

Navigation