Sorption isotherms and kinetics in the primary biodegradation of anionic surfactants by immobilized bacteria: I. Pseudomonas C12B

Abstract

The surfactant-degrading biocatalyst Pseudomonas C12B was immobilized by covalent linking on silanized inorganic supports and by physical entrapment of cells within reticulated polyurethane foam. Both immobilized biocatalysts have been shown to be appropriate for the effective primary biodegradation of the anionic surfactants sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS), dodecylbenzene sulphonic acid (DBS), dioctyl sulphosuccinate (DOSS) and dihexyl sulphosuccinate (DHSS). The overall surfactant removal from water by cells entrapped in reticulated polyurethane foam exhibits a biphasic process, a rapid sorption step of the surfactant onto the cell-loaded support and the intrinsic primary biodegradation slower step, both acting cooperatively. The optimization of variables for the adsorption and the biodegradation processes (flow rate, particle size, substrate concentration) have been studied. Sorption isotherms for the surfactants on reticulated polyurethane foam have been established as type II of the Brunauer, Deming, Deming and Teller (BDDT) classification. The kinetics of the primary biodegradation of SDS by cells covalent linked on sepiolite treated with 3-aminopropyl triethoxysilane (APTS) were found to be first-order. In this case, surfactant adsorption does not exist.