Biodegradation of p-cresol and sulfide removal by a marine-denitrifying consortium

Abstract

The simultaneous removal of sulfide and p-cresol was carried out by using a marine-denitrifying consortium collected in the coastal zone of Sonora, Mexico. Different experimental conditions were used to evaluate the capacity of the consortium to simultaneously eliminate nitrate, sulfide, and p-cresol. For instance, the first set of assays was conducted at different sulfide concentrations (20, 50, and 100 mg S(2À) L(À1) ), with a fixed concentration of p-cresol (45 mg C L(À1) ). The second set of assays was developed at different concentrations of p-cresol (45, 75, and 100 mg C L(-1) ), in the presence of 20 mg S(2À) L(À1) . In all cases, the concentration of nitrate was stoichiometrically added for the complete oxidization of the substrates. The results showed removal efficiencies up to 92% for p-cresol and nitrate at 20 and 50 mg S(2À) L(À1) ; whereas at 100 mg S(2À) L(À1) removal efficiencies were 77% and 59% for p-cresol and nitrate, respectively. On the other hand, sulfide (20 mg L(À1) ) was completely removed under different concentrations of p-cresol tested, with a partial accumulation of nitrite according to the increment of p-cresol concentration. The results obtained indicate that the marine consortium was able to simultaneously remove the pollutants studied.

Keywords: Biodegradation; Denitrification; Marine consortium; Sulfide; p-Cresol.