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Bioremediation

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Updated: Mar 13, 2026

An Anaerobic Biosensor Assay for the Detection of Mercury and Cadmium

An Anaerobic Biosensor Assay for the Detection of Mercury and Cadmium

Published on: December 17, 2018

Bio-augmentation and nutrient amendment decrease concentration of mercury in contaminated soil.

Khandaker Rayhan Mahbub¹, Kannan Krishnan¹, Stuart Andrews²

¹Global Centre for Environmental Remediation, Faculty of Science and Information Technology, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia; Cooperative Research Centre for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of the Environment (CRC-CARE), Mawson Lakes, Adelaide, SA 5095, Australia.

The Science of the Total Environment

|October 28, 2016

Summary

Bioremediation using mercury-reducing bacteria and nutrient amendment effectively cleaned contaminated soils. This approach improved soil quality, as evidenced by enhanced plant growth in remediated soils.

Keywords:

Bacterial volatilization Bioremediation Cucumber Lettuce Sphingobium

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Integrated Field Lysimetry and Porewater Sampling for Evaluation of Chemical Mobility in Soils and Established Vegetation

Integrated Field Lysimetry and Porewater Sampling for Evaluation of Chemical Mobility in Soils and Established Vegetation

Published on: July 4, 2014

Area of Science:

Environmental Science
Microbiology
Soil Science

Background:

Mercury (Hg) contamination poses significant environmental and health risks.
Bioremediation offers a sustainable approach to detoxify Hg-polluted soils.

Purpose of the Study:

To evaluate the efficacy of mercury-volatilizing bacteria (Sphingobium SA2) and nutrient amendment for mercury (Hg) soil remediation.
To assess the impact of different soil properties (pH, organic carbon) on bioremediation efficiency.

Main Methods:

Utilized Sphingobium SA2 for bio-augmentation in field and artificially spiked soils.
Applied nutrient amendment alone and in combination with bio-augmentation.
Monitored Hg removal percentages and assessed soil quality improvement through plant growth (lettuce, cucumber).

Main Results:

Bio-augmentation with Sphingobium SA2 removed 60% of Hg in field soil within 7 days, with further improvement upon nutrient addition.
In spiked soils, bio-augmentation achieved 33-48% Hg removal in 14 days.
Nutrient amendment alone removed 50% of Hg in field soil over 28 days.
Combined bio-augmentation and nutrient amendment yielded the best Hg removal results.
Improved soil quality was confirmed by increased root lengths of lettuce and cucumber.

Conclusions:

Mercury-reducing bacteria, particularly Sphingobium SA2, show significant potential for Hg-contaminated soil remediation.
Nutrient amendment enhances bioremediation efficiency, especially when combined with bacterial bio-augmentation.
Trapping volatilized mercury is recommended for optimizing the bioremediation process.