In this work biodegradation of basic fuchsin and methyl red by the blue green algae Hydrocoleum oligotrichum and Oscillatoria limnetica was investigated. The degradation of basic fuschin after 7 days by H. oligotrichum and O. limnetica was 92.44% and 90.23%, respectively. On the other hand, the degradation of methyl red by H. oligotrichum and O. limnetica after 7 days was 53.23% and 50.18%, respectively. The degradation of these dyes by algae seems to be related to the molecular structures of the compound and physiological metabolism of algae. Infra red (IR) spectra represented a new peak at 3200 cm-1 and a reduction in the azo band at 1570-1630 cm-1. Visible spectroscopy and Thin layer chromatography (TLC) confirmed that color removal was due to degradation of the dye. The original dyes and the degraded dye products were evaluated by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) and mass spectra (MS) before and after treatment by algae to examine the ability of the algae to degrade dyes.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.