Biofilm Reactor for Removal: Review with Challenges and A Study with Freeze Dried Bacteria
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 142, Issue 9
Abstract
The present article intends to make a state-of-the review of removal of ions from wastewater using biofilm reactor. Preservation of mercury resistant bacteria has been identified as one of the challenges regarding commercialization of biofilm reactors for this purpose. Finally, a case study on biofilm reactor using freeze-dried Bacillus cereus (JUBT1) has been incorporated. A novel, cost-effective, and economically feasible freeze-drying protocol has been designed and optimized for JUBT1. The freeze-dried strain renders the same characteristics as that of the native strain after revival. The mercury removal efficiency of the biofilm of revived freeze-dried cells is comparable to that of the native cells with a negligible deviation (absolute) of 0.16%. Thus, the present study could prove itself sufficient to throw some light on the future prospects on demercurization of wastewater using bacterial biofilm.
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Acknowledgments
The authors are grateful to UPE II, Jadavpur University, and funding by University Grant Commission, New Delhi, for the financial support. The authors are indebted to the learned reviewers of this journal for their valuable guidance to revise the manuscript.
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Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 142 • Issue 9 • September 2016
Copyright
© 2015 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 5, 2014
Accepted: May 5, 2015
Published online: Jul 3, 2015
Discussion open until: Dec 3, 2015
Published in print: Sep 1, 2016
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