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Updated: Jul 3, 2026
A Whole Cell Bioreporter Approach to Assess Transport and Bioavailability of Organic Contaminants in Water Unsaturated Systems
Published on: December 24, 2014
Comparison between entrapment methods for phenol removal and operation of bioreactor packed with co-entrapped
Kyung Han Kwon1, Kang-Yeoun Jung, Sung Ho Yeom
1Department of Environmental and Applied Chemical Engineering, Kangnung National University, Gangneung, Gangwondo 210-702, South Korea.
Abstract:
A microorganism capable of degrading phenol was isolated from crude oil contaminated soil and identified as Pseudomonas fluorescence. A porous polymer bead of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and Xanthan gum was found to be the best entrapment for phenol degradation in terms of bead shape (spherical form), bead strength, non-agglomeration, phenol degradation rate, and cell holding inside the bead. Activated carbon was co-immobilized with the microorganism in the bead, which readily adsorbed phenol to decrease initial phenol concentration. Due to the decreased phenol concentration, the cells needed shorter adaptation time after which the microorganism stably degraded phenol. When the bead containing microorganism with 1% of activated carbon was packed in a packed-bed bioreactor, the start-up period was shortened by 40 h and the removal efficiency of phenol during the period was increased by 28% than the case with only microorganism.
