Influence of Calcium, Iron, and pH on Phosphate Availability for Microbial Mineralization of Organic Chemicals

A study was conducted to determine some of the factors affecting the P requirement for the biodegradation of p-nitrophenol, phenol, and glucose by Pseudomonas and Corynebacterium strains. Mineralization of glucose was rapid and the Pseudomonas sp. grew extensively in solutions with 5 and 10 mM phosphate, but the rate and extent of degradation were low and the bacterial population never became abundant in media with 0.2 mM phosphate. Similar results were obtained with the Corynebacterium sp. growing in media containing p-nitrophenol or phenol and in solutions with a purified phosphate salt. The extent of growth of the Corynebacterium sp. was reduced with 2 or 10 mM phosphate in media containing high Fe concentrations. Ca at 5 mM but not 0.5 mM inhibited p-nitrophenol mineralization by the Corynebacterium sp. with phosphate concentrations from 0.2 to 5.0 mM. Phenol mineralization by the Pseudomonas sp. in medium with 0.2 mM phosphate was rapid at pH 5.2, but the bacteria had little or no activity at pH 8.0. In contrast, the activity was greater at pH 8.0 than at pH 5.2 when the culture contained 10 mM phosphate. These effects of pH were similar in media with 5 mM Ca or no added Ca. We conclude that the effect of P on bacterial degradation can be influenced by the pH and the concentrations of Fe and Ca.