Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

An environmentally sustainable process for remediation of phenol polluted wastewater and simultaneous clean energy generation as by-product

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The study reports a novel algal system for biofuel production coupled to phenol remediation. High-performance liquid chromatography analysis shows phenol-acclimatized Chlorella pyrenoidosa completely degrades high phenol concentrations of 50–1200 mg/l. The ability of C. pyrenoidosa to efficiently grow on high phenol concentrations was endorsed by its high growth kinetic parameters of Ks (400.54 mg/l) and KI (800.41 mg/l). An enhanced growth rate of 0.072 h−1 was obtained by utilizing optimized physical parameters of biomass concentration (200 mg/l), photoperiodicity (14 h light: 10 h dark) and pH 7. Preadaptation of C. pyrenoidosa to target phenol concentration before actual application for phenol treatment is proposed as a strategy for eliminating lag phase and thus faster growth (0.078 h−1) and degradation (0.561 h−1) rates. Preadaptation further increases µmax (0.22 h−1), Ks (500.54 mg/l) and KI (900.41 mg/l) enhancing efficiency for growth on high phenol concentrations. The practical applicability of C. pyrenoidosa for phenol contaminated wastewater remediation was proved by its ability to completely degrade 10 and 250 mg/l phenol in petroleum refinery wastewater. Phenol stress induced total and neutral lipid production in algal biomass qualifying the spent biomass as a promising source for biodiesel production. Additionally, the residual biomass after lipid extraction served as substrate for bioethanol fermentation adding to efficiency of the process for biofuel applications. These findings suggest an environmentally sustainable process for treatment of phenol pollution and clean energy production which is the need of the hour. The developed process has been covered by an applied patent.

Graphical Abstract

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abdelwahab O, Amin NK, El Ashtoukhy ES (2009) Electrochemical removal of phenol from oil refinery wastewater. J Hazard Mater 163(711):716

    Google Scholar 

  • Abuhamed T, Bayraktar E, Mehmetoğlu T, Mehmetoğlu Ü (2004) Kinetics model for growth of Pseudomonas putida F1 during benzene, toluene and phenol biodegradation. Process Biochem 39(8):983–988

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Agarry SE, Durojaiye AO, Solomon BO (2008a) Microbial degradation of phenols: a review. Int J Environ Pollut 32:12–28

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Agarry SE, Durojaiye AO, Yusuf RO, Aremu MO (2008b) Biodegradation of phenol in refinery wastewater by pure cultures of Pseudomonas aeruginosa NCIB 950 and Pseudomonas fluorescence NCIB 3756. Int J Environ Pollut 32:3–11

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Aiba S, Shoda M, Nagatani M (1968) Kinetics of product inhibition in alcohol fermentation. Biotechnol Bioeng 10:845–864

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bai J, Wen J-P, Li H-M, Jiang Y (2007) Kinetic modeling of growth and biodegradation of phenol and m-cresol using Alcaligenes faecalis. Process Biochem 42(4):510–517

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bajaj M, Gallert C, Winter J (2008) Biodegradation of high phenol containing synthetic wastewater by an aerobic fixed bed reactor. Bioresour Technol 99:8376–8381

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Banerjee A, Ghoshal AK (2010) Phenol degradation by Bacillus cereus: pathway and kinetic modeling. Bioresour Technol 101:5501–5507

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Baranyi J (2010) Modelling and parameter estimation of bacterial growth with distributed lag time. Dissertation, University of Szeged

  • Bhatnagar A, Bhatnagar M, Chinnasamy S, Das KC (2010) Chlorella minutissima—a promising fuel alga for cultivation in municipal wastewaters. Appl Biochem Biotechnol 161:523–536

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bligh EG, Dyer WJ (1959) A rapid method for total lipid extraction and purification. Can J Biochem Physiol 37:911–917

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chen W, Sommerfeld M, Hu Q (2011) Microwave assisted nile red method for in vivo quantification of neutral lipids in microalgae. Bioresour Technol 102:135–141

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cooney M, Young G, Nagle N (2009) Extraction of bio-oils from microalgae. Sep Purif Rev 38:291–325

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Das B, Mandal TK, Patra S (2015) A comprehensive study on Chlorella pyrenoidosa for phenol degradation and its potential applicability as biodiesel feedstock and animal feed. Appl Biochem Biotechnol 176:1382–1401

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dey S, Mukherjee S (2010) Performance and kinetic evaluation of phenol biodegradation by mixed microbial culture in a batch reactor. Int J Water Resour Environ Eng 3:40–49

    Google Scholar 

  • Duan Z (2011) Microbial degradation of phenol by activated sludge in batch reactor. Environ Prot Eng 37:53–63

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • DuBois M, Gilles KA, Hamilton JK, Rebers PA, Smith F (1956) Colorimetric method for determination of sugars and related substances. Anal Chem 28:350–356

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Edwards VH (2004) The influence of high substrate concentrations on microbial kinetics. Biotechnol Bioeng 12:679–712

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • El Naas MH, Al-Zuhair S, Alhajja MA (2010) Removal of phenol from petroleum refinery wastewater through absorption on date pit activated carbon. Chem Eng J 162:997–1005

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • El-Sheekh MM, Ghareib MM, EL-Souod GWA (2012) Biodegradation of phenolic and polycyclic aromatic compounds by some algae and cyanobacteria. J Bioremed Biodegrad 3:133

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Farooq W, Lee YC, Ryu BG, Kim BH, Kim HS, Choi YE, Yang JW (2013) Two-stage cultivation of two Chlorella sp. strains by simultaneous treatment of brewery wastewater and maximizing lipid productivity. Bioresour Technol 132:230–238

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Feng Y, Li C, Zhang D (2011) Lipid production of Chlorella vulgaris cultured in artificial wastewater medium. Bioresour Technol 102:101–105

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Feng GD, Zhang F, Cheng LH, Xu XH, Zhang L, Chen HL (2013) Evaluation of FTIR and nile red methods for microalgal lipid characterization and biomass composition determination. Bioresour Technol 128:107–112

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Firozjaee TT, Najafpour GD, Khavarpour M, Bakhshi Z, Pishgar R, Mousavi N (2011) Phenol biodegradation kinetics in an anaerobic batch reactor. Iranica J Energy Env 2:68–73

    Google Scholar 

  • Friman H, Schechter A, Ioffe Y, Nitzan Y, Cahan R (2013) Current production in a microbial fuel cell using a pure culture of Cupriavidus basilensis growing in acetate or phenol as a carbon source. Microb Biotechnol 6:425–434

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gao QT, Wong YS, Tam NFY (2011) Removal and biodegradation of nonylphenol by different Chlorella sp. Mar Pollut Bull 63:445–451

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gracia MCC, Camacho GF, Miron AS, Sevilla JMF, Chisti Y, Grima EM (2006) Mixotrophic production of marine microalga Phaeodactylum tricornutum on various carbon sources. J Microbiol Biotechnol 16:689–694

    Google Scholar 

  • Haldane JBS (1965) Enzyme. MIT Press, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Hasan SA, Jabeen S (2015) Degradation kinetics and pathway of phenol by Pseudomonas and Bacillus sp. Biotechnol Biotec Equip 29:45–53

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hu H, Gao K (2003) Optimization of growth and fatty acid composition of a unicellular marine picoplankton, Nannochloropsis sp., with enriched carbon sources. Biotechnol Lett 25:421–425

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jiang HL, Tay JH, Tay STL (2002) Aggregation of immobilized activated sludge cells into aerobically grown microbial granules the aerobic biodegradation of phenol. Lett Appl Microbiol 35:439–445

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jiang ST, Guan YJ, Bai SL (2012) Power generation from phenol degradation using a microbial fuel cell. Adv Mater Res 512:1432–1437

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jou CJG, Huang GC (2003) A pilot study for oil refinery wastewater treatment using a fixed-film bioreactor. Adv Environ Res 7:463–469

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kavitha C, Ashokkumar V, Chinnasamy S, Bhaskar S, Rengasamy R (2014) Pretreatment of lipid extracted Botryococcus braunii spent biomass for bioethanol production. Int J Curr Biotechnol 2:11–18

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kelknar V, Kosarnic N (1992) Degradation of phenols by algae. Environ Technol 13:493–501

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kim KH, Choi IS, Kim HM, Wi SG, Bae HJ (2014) Bioethanol production from the nutrient stress-induced microalga Chlorella vulgaris by enzymatic hydrolysis and immobilized yeast fermentation. Bioresour Technol 153:47–54

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kong WB, Yang H, Cao YT, Song HH, Xia SF (2013) Effect of glycerol and glucose on the enhancement of biomass, lipid and soluble carbohydrate production by Chlorella vulgaris in mixotrophic culture. Food Technol Biotechnol 51:62–69

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kumar A, Kumar S, Kumar S (2005) Biodegradation kinetics of phenol and catechol using Pseudomonas putida MTCC 1194. Biochem Eng J 22(2):151–159

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kwon KH, Yeom SH (2009) Optimal microbial adaptation routes for the rapid degradation of high concentration of phenol. Bioprocess Biosyst Eng 32:435–442

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Laurens LML, Quinn M, Wychen S, Templeton DW, Wolfrum EJ (2012) Accurate and reliable quantification of total microalgal fuel potential as fatty acid methyl esters by in situ transesterification. Anal Bioanal Chem 403:167–178

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lee OK, Oh YK, Lee EY (2015) Bioethanol production from carbohydrate enriched residual biomass obtained after lipid extraction of Chlorella sp. KR-1. Bioresour Technol 196:22–27

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Li Y, Li J, Wang C, Wang P (2010) Growth kinetics and phenol biodegradation of psychrotrophic Pseudomonas putida LY1. Bioresour Technol 101:6740–6744

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lika K, Papadakis IA (2009) Modelling biodegradation of phenolic compounds by microalgae. J Sea Res 62:135–146

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lincoln EP, Carmichael WW (1981) Preliminary tests of toxicity of Synechocystis sp. grown on wastewater medium. In: Carmichael WW (ed) The water environment. Springer, New York, pp 223–230

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Lv JM, Cheng LH, Xu XH, Zhang L, Chen HL (2010) Enhanced lipid production of Chlorella vulgaris by adjustment of cultivation conditions. Bioresour Technol 101:6797–6804

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Magri AD, Magri AL, Balestrieri F, Sacchini A, Marini D (1997) Spectrophotometric micromethod for the determination of ethanol in commercial beverages. Frensenius J Anal Chem 357:985–988

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mahapatra DM, Chanakya HN, Ramachandra TV (2014) Bioremediation and lipid synthesis through mixotrophic algal consortia in municipal wastewater. Bioresour Technol 168:142–150

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Maranon E, Vazquez I, Rodriguez J, Castrillon L, Fernandez Y (2008) Coke wastewater treatment by a three-step activated sludge system. Water Air Soil Pollut 192:155–164

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mathur AK, Majumder CB (2010) Kinetics modelling of the biodegradation of benzene, toluene and phenol as single substrate and mixed substrate by using Pseudomonas putida. Chem Biochem Eng 24:101–109

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Monteiro ÁAMG, Boaventura RAR, Rodrigues AE (2000) Phenol biodegradation by Pseudomonas putida DSM 548 in a batch reactor. Biochem Eng J 6(1):45–49

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mort SL, Dean-Ross D (1994) Biodegradation of phenolic compounds by sulfate reducing bacteria from contaminated sediments. Microb Ecol 28:67–77

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mosier N, Wyman C, Dale B, Elander R, Lee YY, Holtzapple M, Ladisch M (2005) Features of promising technologies for pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass. Bioreour Technol 96:673–686

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ojumu TV, Bello OO, Sonibare JA, Solomon BO (2005) Evaluation of microbial systems for bioremediation of petroleum refinery effluents in Nigeria. Afr J Biotechnol 4:31–35

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Papazi A, Assimakopoulos K, Kotzabasis K (2012) Bioenergetic strategy for biodegradation of p-cresol by the unicellular green alga Scenedesmus obliquus. PLoS ONE. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0051852

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Patil SS, Jena HM (2015) Statistical optimization of phenol degradation by Bacillus pumilus OS1 using Plackett–Burman design and response surface methodology. Arab J Sci Eng 40:2141–2151

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pinto G, Pollio A, Previtera L, Stanzione M, Temussi F (2003) Removal of low molecular weight phenols from olive oil mill wastewater using microalgae. Biotechnol Lett 25:1657–1659

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pishgar R, Najafpour GD, Mousavi N, Bakhshi Z, Khorrami M (2012) Phenol biodegradation kinetics in the presence of supplimentary substrate. Int J Eng 25(3(B)):181–192

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pistorius AMA, DeGrip WJ, Egorova-Zachernyuk TA (2009) Monitoring of biomass composition from microbiological sources by means of FT-IR spectroscopy. Biotechnol Bioeng 103(1):123–129

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sahoo NK, Ghosh PK, Pakshirajan K (2011a) Kinetics of 4-bromophenol degradation using calcium alginate immobilized Arthrobacter chlorophenolicus A6. Int J Earth Sci Eng 4:663–668

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sahoo NK, Pakshirajan K, Ghosh PK (2011b) Batch Biodegradation of para-nitrophenol using Arthrobacter chlorophenolicus A6. Appl Biochem Biotechnol 165:1587–1596

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Saravanan P, Pakshirajan K, Saha P (2008) Growth kinetics of an indigenous mixed microbial constrotium during phenol degradation in a batch reactor. Bioresour Technol 99:205–209

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Scragg AH (2006) The effect of phenol on the growth of Chlorella vulgaris and Chlorella VT-1. Enzyme Microb Technol 39(4):796–799

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Semple KT, Cain RB (1996) Biodegradation of phenol by algae Ochromonas danica. Appl Environ Microbiol 62:1265–1273

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Senthivelan T, Kanagaraj J, Panda RC, Mandal AB (2014) Biodegradation of phenol by mixed microbial culture: an ecofriendly approach for pollution reduction. Clean Technol Environ Policy 16:113–126

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sharma KK, Schuhmann H, Schenk PM (2012) High lipid induction in microalgae for biodiesel production. Energies 5:1532–1553

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tisler T, Zagorc-Koncan J (1997) Comparative assessment of toxicity of phenol, formaldehyde and industrial wastewater to aquatic organisms. Water Air Soil Pollut 97:315–322

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Vijayagopal V, Viruthagiri T (2005) Batch kinetic studies in phenol biodegradation and comparison. Indian J Biotechnol 4:565–567

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wang L, Li Y, Yu P, Xie Z, Luo Y, Lin Y (2010) Biodegradation of phenol at high concentration by a novel fungal strain Paecilomyces variotii JH6. J Hazard Mater 183(1–3):366–371

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Webb JL (1963) Enzyme and metabolic inhibitors. Academic, New York

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Woertz I, Feffer A, Lundquist T, Nelson Y (2009) Algae grown on diary and municipal wastewater for simultaneous nutrient removal and lipid production for biofuel feedstock. J Environ Eng 135:1115–1122

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wolski EA, Durruty I, Haure PM, Gonzalez JF (2012) Penicillium chrysogenum: phenol degradation abilities and kinetic model. Water Air Soil Pollut 223:2323–2332

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yan J, Jianping W, Hongmei L, Suliang Y, Zongding H (2005) The biodegradation of phenol at high initial concentration by the yeast Candida tropicalis. Biochem Eng J 24(3):243–247

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yang JS, Rasa E, Tantayotai P, Scow KM, Yuan HL, Hristova KR (2011) Mathematical model of Chlorella minutissima UTEX2341 growth and lipid production under photoheterotrophic fermentation conditions. Bioresour Technol 102:3077–3082

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yano T, Nakahara T, Kamiyama S, Yamada K (1966) Kinetic studies on microbial activities in concentrated solutions I effect of excess sugars on oxygen uptake rate of a cell free respiratory system. Agric Biol Chem 30:42–48

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ye F, Shen D (2004) Acclimation of anaerobic sludge degrading chlorophenols and the biodegradation kinetics during acclimation period. Chemosphere 54:1573–1580

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zhao X, Wang Y, Ye Z, Borthwick AGL, Ni J (2006) Oil field wastewater treatment in biological aerated filter by immobilized microorganisms. Process Biochem 41:1475–1483

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zhou J, Yu X, Ding C, Wang Z, Zhou Q, Pao H, Cai W (2011) Optimization of phenol degradation by Candida tropicalis Z-04 using Plackett–Burman design and response surface methodology. J Environ Sci 23:22–30

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

Bhaskar Das acknowledge Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati, for providing research fellowship to pursue doctoral studies at the Centre for the Environment, Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati. The present work is not financially supported by any funding agency.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to S. Patra.

Additional information

Editorial responsibiility: G. Ravindran.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Das, B., Selvaraj, G. & Patra, S. An environmentally sustainable process for remediation of phenol polluted wastewater and simultaneous clean energy generation as by-product. Int. J. Environ. Sci. Technol. 16, 147–170 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-017-1599-1

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-017-1599-1

Keywords

Navigation