Comparative biodegradation studies of pre-emergence broadleaf and grass herbicides in aqueous medium

Abstract

Abstract The biodegradation of the herbicides hexazinone, metribuzin, metobromuron and propachlor was evaluated in liquid cultures of an adapted and a non-adapted mixed microbial culture obtained from a wastewater treatment plant. All herbicides were poorly degraded after 50 days ( 50 % ) . The adaptation of microbial culture prior to the biodegradation test shortened only the lag-time in degradation of hexazinone. The level of biodegradation correlated with the log K ow values of the molecules tested ( R 2 = 0.970 ). Metobromuron at 100 mg L - 1 inhibited the metabolism of aniline by the mixed culture.