A laboratory-scale study was carried out to evaluate the groundwater bioremediation potential of hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)), taking into account the chromate pollution of an industrial site located in Southern Italy (Apulia Region). The reduction of Cr(VI) was studied on laboratory microcosms, set up in different experimental conditions, namely: ABIO (soil and water sterilized), BIO (soil and water not sterilized), LATT (with the addition of lactate), and YE (with the addition of yeast extract). Control test lines, set up by using sterilized matrices and amendments, were employed to assess the occurrence of the pollutant reduction via chemical processes. By combining molecular (microbial abundance, specific chromate reductase genes (ChR) and the Shewanella oinedensis bacterial strain) with chemical analyses of chromium (VI and III) in the matrices (water and soil) of each microcosm, it was possible to investigate the response of microbial populations to different experimental conditions, and therefore, to assess their bioremediation capability in promoting Cr(VI) reduction. The overall results achieved within this work evidenced the key role of amendments (lactate and yeast extract) in enhancing the biological reduction of hexavalent chromium in the contaminated aqueous phase of laboratory microcosms. The highest value of Cr(VI) removal (99.47%) was obtained in the YE amended microcosms at seven days.
Keywords: hexavalent chromium; lactate; microcosms; yeast extract.