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Solving pollution problems through biotechnology
Polluth Problems Through Blatechnology Sohdng
Behaving somewhat like a living separator, specific formulations of dried bacterial cultures can be matched and balanced to digest polluting substances, thereby reducing them to harmless end products. Dr. Barry White, Technical Director of lmbach UK looks at the way in which bacterial cultures can be used to clean up oil spills and chemical pollutants produced by the coatings Industry. created by the coatings E ffluent industry has the potential to
harm the environment in two principal ways: waste from the application of the coatings and residue from the cleaning of coated surfaces after exposure to contaminates. The use of dried bacterial cultures (or DBCs) can alleviate many of the environmental problems arising from these causes. For any naturally occurring organic compound, there exists at least one species of bacterium capable of metabolising it (l). Evolution has also ensured that bacteria are able to tolerate many unpleasant envlronments, such as salt water, while metabolising. Application of cultures of bacteria speciflcally suited to consumption of a problem chemical is still in the early stages of development, but many successes have been achieved. The word bacteria conjures up images of disease, and bioremediation is often rejected from fear that some of them may be harmful. In fact a heavily populated culture of a particular cocktail of species will not tolerate other bacteria entering the system, but will out-compete them for nutrients, and
Polysster JZshes on galvanising usually have a rough surface texture, and removal of any staining therefore cannot be done with simple chemicals since they do not have sufficiently vigorous action to remove stains from the crevices. Cleaning requires abrasion, harmful to the coating. Bacteria can enter the comparatively large crevices and digest any natural product stains, such as fats and greases, coffee, or oil, converting them to carbon dioxide and bacterial protein. Once the stain has disappeared, the bacteria can be washed from the polyester with water and they revert to their naturally occurring concentration. Plating processes result in dilute solutions of toxic waste such as cyanides and heavy metals such as cadmium. There are known bacterial cultures which can metabolise cyanide, and others which can absorb heavy metals, allowing them to be filtered from the effluent, and even recovered by treating the bacterial sludge. Paints are resistant to bacterial degradation, so bacterial cleaning of stained paintwork offers a gentle method of contaminant removal, using
An IBS technician inspecting brickwork and .surnnmding soil that has been contam& 7UZt&bgspiltoiL-Tb.eUse of specially s&c&d naturally occuwing DBCs speeds up t?w o!egm&&n of the oil. The contaminated area therefwe can be quickly mtwned to its original state withu& leaving behind any unpleasant side @ects.
consume them when they die. Thus the is, whether the members of the cocktail itself are at all pathogenic. Given the richness and variety of bacterial species on Earth, it is not too difficult to find harmless species which have the desired appetite. In fact the appetite for the problem substances is itself an indicator that the species of bacterium has little aggressiveness towards human or animal tissue. only question
Filtration & Separation
July/August
1991
mechanical action at all. Again, once the stain has been removed, the bacteria can be washed off with water. no
Wood-preservation wastes including pentachlorophenol and several other derivatives of phenol, as well as several polynuclear aromatic species, have been successfully reduced by bacteria to less than 10 parts per million at sites in the Southern United States.
to bvat and eliminate pollulixm problems.
numerous
h4Uaniuus
Cleaning up oil spills Domestic heating oil spills can result in substantial insurance claims. Once oil has seeped into brickwork and foundations, the remedy up until now, has been expensive and lengthy. Detergents, chemicals and removal of the contaminated area to a dumping site, are all costly and often ineffective options which add to the pollution problem. IBS, part of the international damage management specialist Re-Tech Imbath, has developed an environmentally friendly technique to solve land oil spill problems. Using biotechnology it offers a cheaper, more effective and faster method of decontaminating and disposing of oil. The use of specially selected naturally occurring dried bacterial cultures (DBCs) simply speeds up the degradation of the oil. If left untreated oil will take many years to break down. However, IBS can turn this natural process into a matter of weeks or days. The contaminated area therefore can be quickly returned to its original state without leaving behind any unpleasant side effects. At Dublin Castle during refurbishment, a gear-box at the top of a tower crane burst. Strong winds splashed the oil onto newly dressed stone walling. Traditional poultice methods failed to remove the unsightly streaks of oil, but constant spraying of a bacterial culture successfully cleaned a test area, and was then applied to the each of the two affected walls. Although the bacteria were too large to penetrate between the grains of the stone, by eating the oil at the surface, they maintained zero surface concentration drawing the oil out of the stonec2). Protection of the varnish on timber was necessary as, since it is petroleum baaed, the bacteria would have been able to consume it.
References 1. Krueger, R. G., Gillham N. W., Coggin
J. H., Introduction to Microbiology. 2. White, B. S., Bacterial Cleaning: Dublin Castle, Diagnostic Engineer \ ing 1990. Imbach Bialogical Services Ltd, Westgate, Aldridge, west Midlands KS9 8EX (U&l
243
Behaving somewhat like a living separator, specific formulations of dried bacterial cultures can be matched and balanced to digest polluting substances, thereby reducing them to harmless end products. Dr. Barry White, Technical Director of lmbach UK looks at the way in which bacterial cultures can be used to clean up oil spills and chemical pollutants produced by the coatings Industry. created by the coatings E ffluent industry has the potential to
harm the environment in two principal ways: waste from the application of the coatings and residue from the cleaning of coated surfaces after exposure to contaminates. The use of dried bacterial cultures (or DBCs) can alleviate many of the environmental problems arising from these causes. For any naturally occurring organic compound, there exists at least one species of bacterium capable of metabolising it (l). Evolution has also ensured that bacteria are able to tolerate many unpleasant envlronments, such as salt water, while metabolising. Application of cultures of bacteria speciflcally suited to consumption of a problem chemical is still in the early stages of development, but many successes have been achieved. The word bacteria conjures up images of disease, and bioremediation is often rejected from fear that some of them may be harmful. In fact a heavily populated culture of a particular cocktail of species will not tolerate other bacteria entering the system, but will out-compete them for nutrients, and
Polysster JZshes on galvanising usually have a rough surface texture, and removal of any staining therefore cannot be done with simple chemicals since they do not have sufficiently vigorous action to remove stains from the crevices. Cleaning requires abrasion, harmful to the coating. Bacteria can enter the comparatively large crevices and digest any natural product stains, such as fats and greases, coffee, or oil, converting them to carbon dioxide and bacterial protein. Once the stain has disappeared, the bacteria can be washed from the polyester with water and they revert to their naturally occurring concentration. Plating processes result in dilute solutions of toxic waste such as cyanides and heavy metals such as cadmium. There are known bacterial cultures which can metabolise cyanide, and others which can absorb heavy metals, allowing them to be filtered from the effluent, and even recovered by treating the bacterial sludge. Paints are resistant to bacterial degradation, so bacterial cleaning of stained paintwork offers a gentle method of contaminant removal, using
An IBS technician inspecting brickwork and .surnnmding soil that has been contam& 7UZt&bgspiltoiL-Tb.eUse of specially s&c&d naturally occuwing DBCs speeds up t?w o!egm&&n of the oil. The contaminated area therefwe can be quickly mtwned to its original state withu& leaving behind any unpleasant side @ects.
consume them when they die. Thus the is, whether the members of the cocktail itself are at all pathogenic. Given the richness and variety of bacterial species on Earth, it is not too difficult to find harmless species which have the desired appetite. In fact the appetite for the problem substances is itself an indicator that the species of bacterium has little aggressiveness towards human or animal tissue. only question
Filtration & Separation
July/August
1991
mechanical action at all. Again, once the stain has been removed, the bacteria can be washed off with water. no
Wood-preservation wastes including pentachlorophenol and several other derivatives of phenol, as well as several polynuclear aromatic species, have been successfully reduced by bacteria to less than 10 parts per million at sites in the Southern United States.
to bvat and eliminate pollulixm problems.
numerous
h4Uaniuus
Cleaning up oil spills Domestic heating oil spills can result in substantial insurance claims. Once oil has seeped into brickwork and foundations, the remedy up until now, has been expensive and lengthy. Detergents, chemicals and removal of the contaminated area to a dumping site, are all costly and often ineffective options which add to the pollution problem. IBS, part of the international damage management specialist Re-Tech Imbath, has developed an environmentally friendly technique to solve land oil spill problems. Using biotechnology it offers a cheaper, more effective and faster method of decontaminating and disposing of oil. The use of specially selected naturally occurring dried bacterial cultures (DBCs) simply speeds up the degradation of the oil. If left untreated oil will take many years to break down. However, IBS can turn this natural process into a matter of weeks or days. The contaminated area therefore can be quickly returned to its original state without leaving behind any unpleasant side effects. At Dublin Castle during refurbishment, a gear-box at the top of a tower crane burst. Strong winds splashed the oil onto newly dressed stone walling. Traditional poultice methods failed to remove the unsightly streaks of oil, but constant spraying of a bacterial culture successfully cleaned a test area, and was then applied to the each of the two affected walls. Although the bacteria were too large to penetrate between the grains of the stone, by eating the oil at the surface, they maintained zero surface concentration drawing the oil out of the stonec2). Protection of the varnish on timber was necessary as, since it is petroleum baaed, the bacteria would have been able to consume it.
References 1. Krueger, R. G., Gillham N. W., Coggin
J. H., Introduction to Microbiology. 2. White, B. S., Bacterial Cleaning: Dublin Castle, Diagnostic Engineer \ ing 1990. Imbach Bialogical Services Ltd, Westgate, Aldridge, west Midlands KS9 8EX (U&l
243