Biodegradation of dioxane and diglyme in industrial waste

Abstract

This study was designed to investigate the biodegradability of Dioxane and Diglyme from industrial wastes using an electrolytic respirometer. Biodegradation studies were conducted using industrial wastes containing Dioxane and Diglyme and synthetic waste containing pure Dioxane in concentrations of 670, 300 and 150 mg/1. The biological activity in the respirometer was measured by monitoring oxygen uptake. The microbial seed for this study was obtained from the acclimated industrial waste, and microorganisms responsible for the degradation of Dioxane and Diglyme were isolated. The biodegradation of Diglyme in the industrial waste, in the presence of other organics, appeared to be more efficient than that observed for the pure compound. The effect of salt concentration on the biodegradation of pure Diglyme was also studied. Degradation of Dioxane was complete for 150 mg/1; however, for higher concentrations degradation of Dioxane was observed to be incomplete. Toxicity of samples containing pure Dioxane and samples collected from the respirometer at different times was assessed by measuring the ATP released by a pure strain of E. coli as a test microorganism. Toxicity assay for samples with accumulated end products beyond a certain level showed a higher level of toxicity than the predicted level of toxicity for the same concentration of pure Dioxane.