Full Length Research Paper
Abstract
To determine their potential use in bioremediation programs, three native bacteria isolated from industrial polluted effluents in Monterrey, México were tested as metal biosorbents at high concentrations of phenol (1000 mg/l). Bacterial isolates were identified as: Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterobacter cloacae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The isolates were found to exhibit combined heavy metal and phenol resistance characteristics. Bacterial growth was unaffected at concentrations over 1,000 mg/l of phenol and simultaneously tolerated individual concentrations of 300 mg/l of Cr6+, Ni2+, Pb2+, Hg2+, Zn2+ and Cd2+. Metal removal rate for E. cloacae ranged from 23 to 78%, for P. aeruginosa was 23 to 64% and 24 to 64% for K. pneumoniae. These characteristics considered together with their ability to grow in waters of marginal quality, point to a unique advantage of these species for wastewater bioremediation applications.
Key words: Bioremediation, wastewater, remediation, heavy metals, water pollution.
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