title: Degradation of cis- and trans-(4-methylcyclohexyl) methanol in activated sludge.
abstract: Crude (4-methylcyclohexyl)methanol (MCHM) caused extensive contamination of drinking water, wastewater, and the environment during the 2014 West Virginia Chemical Spill. However, information related to the environmental degradation of cis- and trans-4-MCHM, the main components of the crude 4-MCHM mixture, remains largely unknown. This study is among the first to investigate the degradation kinetics and transformation of 4-MCHM isomers in activated sludge. The 4-MCHM loss was mainly due to biodegradation to form carbon dioxide (CO2), plus acetic, propionic, isobutyric, and isovaleric acids with little contribution from adsorption. The biodegradation of 4-MCHM isomers followed the first-order kinetic model with half-lives higher than 0.50 days. Nitrate augmented the degradation of 4-MCHM isomers, while glucose and acetate decreased their degradation. One 4-MCHM-degrading bacterium isolated from activated sludge was identified as Acinetobacter bouvetii strain EU40 based on 16S rRNA gene sequences. This study will enhance the prediction of the environmental fate of 4-MCHM in water treatment systems.
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg 24061, USA; College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg 24061, USA.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhi
authors.affiliation: College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.
authors.forename: Yangsheng
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg 24061, USA.
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Smiley
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg 24061, USA.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gallagher
authors.affiliation: Department of Earth and Environmental Engineering, Columbia University, New York 10027, USA.
authors.forename: Xi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg 24061, USA.
authors.forename: Andrea M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Dietrich
authors.affiliation: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg 24061, USA. Electronic address: husen@vt.edu.
authors.forename: Husen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000150:Acinetobacter / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D002245:Carbon Dioxide / Q000378:metabolism; D003510:Cyclohexanes / Q000378:metabolism*; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000235:genetics; D012722:Sewage / Q000382:microbiology; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D003510:Cyclohexanes; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; D012722:Sewage; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D002245:Carbon Dioxide; C000607184:4-methylcyclohexanemethanol
keywords: Activated sludge; Biodegradation kinetics; Crude (4-methylcyclohexyl)methanol; Transformation products; West Virginia Chemical Spill