Title
Modelling the ex situ bioremediation of diesel-contaminated soil in a slurry bioreactor using a hydrocarbon-degrading inoculant
Date Issued
15 September 2019
Access level
open access
Resource Type
journal article
Author(s)
Balseiro-Romero M.
Monterroso C.
Kidd P.
Gkorezis P.
Vangronsveld J.
Casares J.
Universidad de Santiago de Compostela
Publisher(s)
Academic Press
Abstract
Bioremediation is a soil clean-up technique which exploits the metabolic capacity of microorganisms to degrade soil contaminants. A model was developed to simulate the ex situ bioremediation of a diesel-contaminated soil in a bio-slurry reactor inoculated with a diesel-degrading bacterial strain. Mass transfer processes involving desorption of diesel from soil to water and volatilization of diesel from water, and biodegradation by the bacterial inoculant were included in the model by using Weibull sigmoid kinetics and logistic/Monod kinetics respectively. Model parameters were estimated in batch-based abiotic and biodegradation experiments. Sensitivity analysis revealed the importance of maintaining a high bacterial density in the system for maximum bioremediation efficiency. The model was validated using a pilot bioreactor monitored for 528 h, which removed almost 90% of the diesel present in the system. The results revealed the capacity of the model to predict the bioremediation efficiency under different scenarios by adapting the input parameters to each system.
Start page
840
End page
848
Volume
246
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Ingeniería química Agricultura
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-85068026979
PubMed ID
Source
Journal of Environmental Management
ISSN of the container
03014797
Sponsor(s)
This research was supported by ERDF Interreg Sudoe Program ( PhytoSUDOE-SOE1/P5/E0189 ) and by Hasselt University (BOF project 06G02 and Methusalem project 08M03VGRJ). M. Balseiro-Romero was granted a postdoctoral fellowship ( Programa de axudas á etapa posdoutoral ; ED481B 2017/073 ) by the Consellería de Cultura, Educación e Ordenación Universitaria (Xunta de Galicia, Spain). T. A. Lu-Chau belongs to the Galician Competitive Research Group GRC-ED431C 2017/29 and to CRETUS Strategic Partnership (ED431E 2018/01). M. Balseiro-Romero and C. Monterroso belong to the Galician Competitive Research Group GRC-ED431C 2018/12 and to CRETUS Strategic Partnership (ED431E 2018/01). All these programs are co-funded by ERDF.
Sources of information: Directorio de Producción Científica Scopus