The Role of Bacteria and Factors Affecting the Biodegradation of Pollutants in the Biofilter Reactor: A Review

Abstract

The findings showed that several types of bacteria can help biodegrade organic pollutants, such as Comamonadacea, which can biodegrade volatile fatty acids and aromatic compounds. Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Actinobacteria can biodegrade ammonium. Burkholderiales can biodegrade ferric ions and hydrogen. Comamonas testosteroni is able to biodegrade nitrates. Pseudomonas taiwanensis, Acinetobacter guillouiae, and Klebsiella pneumoniae can reduce copper, chromium and zinc levels. Azolla biomass reduces strontium. Rhodospirillum sp. can biodegrade cadmium, mercury, lead, and nickel. Gallionella ferruginea and Leptothrix sp. can biodegrade arsenic and manganese. Gracilaria sp. can biodegrade aluminum, chromium, and zinc. Desulfovibrio sp. can biodegrade copper, zinc, nickel, iron, and arsenic. Thiomonas sp. can biodegrade arsenic and iron. Thauera selenatis can biodegrade copper, zinc, cadmium, nickel, lead, cobalt, chromium, and mercury. Thiobacillus thiooxidans can degrade both zinc and copper. Sargassum filipendula biodegrades copper and nickel. Meanwhile, in the findings of the factors that affected biofiltration, it was identified that there were four that played a significant role such as temperature, dissolved oxygen, hydraulic retention time, organic loading rate, biological organisms, and supply nutrients. In conclusion, several types of bacteria grow and help biodegrade in biofilter reactors. This is inseparable from the supporting factors that increase the efficiency of pollutant reduction in biofilter reactors.