[Removal of high concentration of phenol from synthetic solutions by fusarium culmorum granules]

ABSTRACT

Effluent generated in several industries contains phenolic compounds, which have been classified as priority pollutants. Due to its toxicity, the conventional systems are inefficient for treatment of phenol-Laden wastewater. Biological processes using pure microbial culture, including fungi and yeast, are environmentally friendly techniques capable of complete destruction of contaminants. This work was aimed at investigating the efficiency of a fungi specie in the decomposition of high concentrations of phenol ranging from 500 to 20000 mg/L. Several batch reactors were operated at different phenol concentration. The concentration of residual phenol was monitored over time using colorimetric method 4-aminoantipyrine. The removal efficiency was calculated considering the initial phenol concentration. Experimental data indicated that the phenol could efficiently degrade using the selected culture. The developed granules could completely degrade phenol at concentrations up to 20000 mg/L. It can be concluded from the experimental data that the biodegradation using the Fungi granules is a very efficient and thus promising technique for treatment of wastewaters containing phenolic compounds