Biodegradation Potential and Influencing Factors of a Special Microorganism to Treat Petrochemical Wastewater

Abstract

The objective of this study is to evaluate the potential ability of an active microorganism on the biodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbons in the petrochemical wastewater from Sinopec Shanghai Petroleum and Chemical Company Limited, China. In lab-scale batch experiments, by using this special functional microorganism to treat the pollutant, the wastewater was purified as one of the applications of the bioaugmentation technique. Results from this study showed that the biodegradation was quicker and more effective than the natural and physical degradation. The wastewater was analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS), and it indicated that the dominant pollutants of the wastewater were petroleum-based normal-alkanes (C15–C30). The concentration of microorganism, aeration time, and temperature of biodegradation all influence the potential biodegradation ability. Meanwhile, the biodegradation capability to biodegrade hydrocarbons by this microorganism is the average removal of total petroleum hydrocarbon and was approximately 85% with chemical oxygen demand about 65%. This study provides a feasible technology for the treatment of hydrocarbon-rich wastewater from petrochemical industries and petroleum refineries.