Production of biomass, carbon dioxide, volatile acids, and their interrelationship with decrease in chemical oxygen demand, during distillery waste treatment by bacterial strains

Abstract

The products of the biodegradation of distillery waste with certain bacteria have been found to be biomass, carbon dioxide, and volatile acids. Volatile acid production levelled off after 48 to 72 h and correlated with the reduction in COD values. Carbon dioxide production did not exhibit such a correlation. The relationship of biomass to carbon dioxide production showed a biphasic pattern, indicating the preferential utilization of some substrates over others. Carbon dioxide production in the later phase may be due to the metabolism of secondary metabolites which do not differ much in their COD values.