title: Microbial degradation of diethanolamine and related compounds.
abstract: Thirteen diethanolamine compounds were tested for their biodegradability employing (1) a bacterium selectively isolated from an industral cutting fluid, and (2) an acclimatized sewage population obtained from a domestic waste treatment plant. Pure culture growth and biochemical oxygen demand studies with the isolate showed that only diethanolamine, methyl-diethanolamine, triethanolamine, and laurylsulphate-diethanolamine were degradable. Biochemical oxygen demand techniques using the acclimatized sewage micro-organisms as seed yielded similar results with only diethanolamine, methyl-diethanolamine, triethanolamine, and laurylsulphate-diethanolamine being oxidized to any meaningful extent. Cyclohexyldiethanolamine, phenyl-diethanolamine, and m-tolyl-diethanolamine had oxygen demands of less than 1% of their theoretically calculated values, while ethyl-diethanolamine and benzyl-diethanolamine accounted for 3.6 and 2.3% of their theoretical values respectively. In both systems employed substitution of the tertiary hydrogen of the amine group with isopropyl, 3-aminopropyl, n-butyl, or t-butyl resulted in biologically recalcitrant compounds.
mesh_terms: D001419:Bacteria / Q000378:metabolism*; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D055598:Chemical Phenomena; D002621:Chemistry; D004983:Ethanolamines / Q000378:metabolism*; D007220:Industrial Waste; D010101:Oxygen Consumption; D011549:Pseudomonas / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D012722:Sewage; D014871:Water Microbiology
chemical_list: D004983:Ethanolamines; D007220:Industrial Waste; D012722:Sewage