title: Biodegradation of volatile organic compounds from paint industries.
abstract: Methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) and methyl iso-butyl ketone (MIBK) constitute significant proportion of the total VOC emissions from manufacturing and application processes of surface coatings. Biodegradation of MEK and MIBK using an acclimatized mixed culture was evaluated, under aerobic condition. Biodegradation studies were carried out using MEK and MIBK as single substrates and in combination. Mixed-pollutant studies were conducted in MEK-dominated system, MIBK-dominated system, and MEK-MIBK equi-concentration systems to understand the concentration-dependent interaction of these compounds in a biosystem. Experimental data obtained from single-pollutant system was used to estimate the biokinetic parameters, viz. μ(max), K(s), K(i), and Y(T), for these compounds. Among the several bio-kinetic models tested, Monod inhibition model was best suited for predicting the biodegradation of these two VOCs. Four multiple-substrate models, viz. no-interaction, competitive, un-competitive, and non-competitive were used to study the nature of inhibition for different combinations of these compounds. The biodegradation of MEK and MIBK mixtures was found to be best described by competitive inhibition model. However, the predictions were not very good for systems where MEK concentration was higher than MIBK concentration.
authors.affiliation: Environmental and Water Resources Engineering Division, Department of Civil Engineering IIT Madras, Chennai 600 036, India.
authors.forename: Aviraj
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Datta
authors.forename: Ligy
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Philip
mesh_terms: D001419:Bacteria / Q000378:metabolism*; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D002244:Carbon / Q000378:metabolism; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*; D007220:Industrial Waste; D007700:Kinetics; D010150:Paint; D055549:Volatile Organic Compounds / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D007220:Industrial Waste; D055549:Volatile Organic Compounds; D002244:Carbon