Organomercurial removal from vaccine production wastewaters in a supported liquid membrane bioreactor.
Vaccine production effluents are strongly polluted with thiomersal, a highly toxic organomercurial compound, for which there is presently no remediation technology available. This work describes a new remediation process based on the extraction of thiomersal from the wastewater to a biological compartment, where it is degraded by a microbial strain. The selective extraction of thiomersal is achieved by using an ionic liquid immobilized in a porous membrane. In the biological compartment, thiomersal is degraded to metallic mercury, under aerobic conditions, by a Pseudomonas putida strain. The utilization of ionic liquids in supported liquid membranes for thiomersal transport, and the kinetics of thiomersal biodegradation by a Pseudomonas putida strain are presented and discussed.
Fortunato
R
R
REQUIMTE/CQFB, Departamento de Química, FCT Universidade Nova de Lisboa, 2829-114 Caparica, Portugal. raquel.fortunato@dq.fct.unl.pt
Afonso
C A M
CA
Crespo
J G
JG
Reis
M A
MA
D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D019149:Bioreactors; D007700:Kinetics; D009941:Organomercury Compounds / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D016958:Pseudomonas putida / Q000378:metabolism; D013849:Thimerosal / Q000493:pharmacokinetics; D014612:Vaccines / Q000592:standards*; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid
D009941:Organomercury Compounds; D014612:Vaccines; D013849:Thimerosal