title: Performance of anaerobic granules for degradation of pentachlorophenol.
abstract: Anaerobic granules degrading pentachlorophenol (PCP) with specific PCP removal activity up to 14.6 mg/g of volatile suspended solids per day were developed in a laboratory-scale anaerobic upflow sludge blanket reactor at 28 degrees C, by using a mixture of acetate, propionate, butyrate, and methanol as the carbon source. The reactor was able to treat synthetic wastewater containing 40 to 60 mg of PCP per liter at a volumetric loading rate of up to 90 mg/liter of reactor volume per day, with a hydraulic retention time of 10.8 to 15 h. PCP removal of more than 99% was achieved. Results of adsorption of PCP by granular biomass indicated that the PCP removal by the granules was due to biodegradation rather than adsorption. A radiotracer assay demonstrated that the PCP-degrading granules mineralized [14C]PCP to 14CH4 and 14CO2. Toxicity test results indicated that syntrophic propionate degraders and acetate-utilizing methanogens were more sensitive to PCP than syntrophic butyrate degraders. The PCP-degrading granules also exhibited a higher tolerance to the inhibition caused by PCP for methane production and degradation of acetate, propionate, and butyrate, compared with anaerobic granules unadapted to PCP.
authors.affiliation: Michigan Biotechnology Institute, Lansing 48909.
authors.forename: W M
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bhatnagar
authors.forename: J G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Zeikus
mesh_terms: D000085:Acetates; D000327:Adsorption; D001421:Bacteria, Anaerobic / Q000378:metabolism*; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D002087:Butyrates; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D008697:Methane / Q000378:metabolism; D000432:Methanol; D008863:Microspheres; D010416:Pentachlorophenol / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D011422:Propionates; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics
chemical_list: D000085:Acetates; D002087:Butyrates; D011422:Propionates; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D010416:Pentachlorophenol; D008697:Methane; D000432:Methanol