Biodegradation of Terephthalic Acid by Isolated Active Sludge Microorganisms and Monitoring of Bacteria in a Continuous Stirred Tank Reactor

Abstract

Terephthalic acid is extensively used as an important raw material in polyester fibers, as well as the production of polyethylene terephthalate bottles and textile industries. Especially, in the petrochemical industry, toxic chemicals are released to the atmosphere during the production of polyethylene terephthalate, unless the wastewater treatment is carried out. It's a well-known fact that chemicals have serious side effects on human health, so manufacturing companies should not dispose of such harmful chemicals without treatment. Biodegradation is an effective option for eco-friendly degradation of hydrocarbons. Hydrocarbondegrading bacteria are everywhere in environment and can utilize these chemicals as sources of carbon and energy. In the present study, aerobic bacterial strains T1, T4, T5, and TK were isolated from activated sludge and crude oil deposits of a petrochemical company in Turkey. The strains were identified to be Pseudomonas sp., Chryseobacterium sp., Burkholderia sp., and Arthrobacter sp. according to morphological, physiological and biochemical characteristics. The strains were able to degrade about 100% of 100 mg/L terephthalic acid within, respectively, 8, 67, 52, 24 hour as sole carbon and energy source. Therefore, these isolates can be HIGHLIGHTS  Terephthalic acid one of the phthalates has been known endocrine disrupting chemical and degraded by bacterial strains. Four bacterial isolates identified as Arthrobacter sp., Chryseobacterium sp. Burkholderia sp. and Pseudomonas sp are able to degrade 100 mgL -1 concentration terephthalic acid. In order to monitory bacteria in CSTR reactor, Real-time PCR was used. Aksu, D., et al.