Study of the degradation in an ultisol of alginate-chitosan complex and its stability and applicability as a soil conditioner.

The present work describes the process of degradation of a polyelectrolytic complex (PEC) based on sodium alginate (ALG) and chitosan (CHI), buried for different time intervals, in a clayey soil (ultisol) collected from the municipality of Campos dos Goytacazes, in the northern region of the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The influence of PEC on soil moisture was also investigated. The results showed that soil moisture increased with the presence of PEC after 7 days of testing, and remained high until the end of the study. FTIR and Raman spectra showed that the breaking of the glycosidic bond (C-O-C) was responsible for the PEC degradation. Thermogravimetry results revealed that alginate was possibly degraded faster than chitosan. Microscopic analysis of the PEC revealed a fragile and fragmented surface of the samples that were buried, in comparison with those not buried. The microbiological assays of the soil confirmed the biodegradation of the polysaccharides. Chemical analysis of soil indicated that PEC did not significantly influence soil fertility. Therefore, we conclude that the PEC (ALG: CHI), formed only by electrostatic interaction, buried in clayey soil, even being biodegraded, can be a promising soil conditioner for agricultural applications.

Production of ethanol 3G from Kappaphycus alvarezii: evaluation of different process strategies.

This study evaluated the potential of Kappaphycus alvarezii as feedstock for ethanol production, i.e. ethanol 3G. First, aquatic biomass was subjected to a diluted acid pretreatment. This acid pretreatment generated two streams--a galactose-containing liquid fraction and a cellulose-containing solid fraction, which were investigated to determine their fermentability with the following strategies: a single-stream process (simultaneous saccharification and co-fermentation (SSCF) of both fractions altogether), which achieved 64.3 g L(-1) of ethanol, and a two-stream process (fractions were fermented separately), which resulted in 38 g L(-1) of ethanol from the liquid fraction and 53.0 g L(-1) from the simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) of the solid fraction. Based on the average fermentable carbohydrate concentration, it was possible to obtain 105 L of ethanol per ton of dry seaweed. These preliminaries results indicate that the use of the macro-algae K. alvarezii has a good potential feedstock for bioethanol production.

The growth of Monoraphidium sp. and Scenedesmus sp. cells in the presence of thorium.

Toxicity of thorium by Monoraphidium sp. and Scenedesmus sp. was studied. Microalgal cultures were inoculated in ASM-1 medium in presence and absence of thorium. Its effect was monitored by direct counting on Fuchs-Rosenthal chamber and with software. The toxicity of thorium over the species was observed for concentrations over 50.0 mg/L. After 30 days, Monoraphidium cells decreased their concentration from 4.23 × 10(6) to 4.27 × 10(5) and 8.57 × 10(5) cells/mL, in the presence of 50.0 and 100.0 mg/L of thorium, respectively. Scenedesmus sp. cells were more resistant to thorium: for an initial cell concentration of 7.65 × 10(4) cells/mL it was observed a change to 5.25 × 10(5) and 5.12 × 10(5) cells/mL, in the presence of thorium at 50.0 and 100.0 mg/L, respectively. This is an indication that low concentrations of the radionuclide favored the growth, and that Scenedesmus cells are more resistant to thorium than Monoraphidium cells. The software used for comparison with direct count method proved to be useful for the improvement of accuracy of the results obtained, a decrease in the uncertainty and allowed recording of the data. The presence of thorium suggests that low concentrations have a positive effect on the growth, due to the presence of the nitrate, indicating its potential for ecotoxicological studies.

Continuous thorium biosorption--dynamic study for critical bed depth determination in a fixed-bed reactor.

The objective of the work was to evaluate the biosorption of thorium by the seaweed Sargassum filipendula in a dynamic system. Different bed depths were tested with the purpose of evaluating the critical bed depth for total uptake of the radioactive element. Several bed depths were tested, ranging from 5.0 to 40.0 cm. Bed depths tested presented distinct capacities to accumulate thorium. An increase in biosorption efficiency was observed with an increase in bed depth. The 30.0 cm bed produced an effluent still containing detectable levels of thorium. The critical bed depth suitable for a complete removal of thorium by S.filipendula biomass was equal to 40.0 cm.

The effects of surfactants on the estimation of bacterial density in petroleum samples.

The effect of the surfactants polyoxyethylene monostearate (Tween 60), polyoxyethylene monooleate (Tween 80), cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB), and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) on the estimation of bacterial density (sulfate-reducing bacteria [SRB] and general anaerobic bacteria [GAnB]) was examined in petroleum samples. Three different compositions of oil and water were selected to be representative of the real samples. The first one contained a high content of oil, the second one contained a medium content of oil, and the last one contained a low content of oil. The most probable number (MPN) was used to estimate the bacterial density. The results showed that the addition of surfactants did not improve the SRB quantification for the high or medium oil content in the petroleum samples. On other hand, Tween 60 and Tween 80 promoted a significant increase on the GAnB quantification at 0.01% or 0.03% m/v concentrations, respectively. CTAB increased SRB and GAnB estimation for the sample with a low oil content at 0.00005% and 0.0001% m/v, respectively.

The use of seaweed and sugarcane bagasse for the biological treatment of metal-contaminated waters under sulfate-reducing conditions.

When wetlands reach maximum treatment capacity to remove heavy metals, removal can still take place through precipitation as sulfide because of the biological reduction of sulfate. To achieve this goal, anaerobic conditions must be attained, a sulfate source must exist, and an adequate substrate for sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) is also required. In the present work, two ligneous-cellulosic materials, a brown seaweed and sugarcane bagasse, have been selected as substrates for SRB growth. Experiments were simultaneously conducted in continuous operation in two columns (0.57 L each), one containing the ligneous-cellulosic material plus inoculum and another containing only the ligneous-cellulosic material. In this work, the removal of cadmium and zinc was studied because of their presence in effluents from mining/metallurgy operations. Results obtained indicated that the inoculated reactor was able to treat the effluent more efficiently than the noninoculated reactor considering the time course of the tests.

Characterization of thermostructural damages observed in a seaweed used for biosorption of cadmium: effects on the kinetics and uptake.

The effect of drying Sargassum filipendula on the kinetics and uptake of cadmium was studied. The maximum uptake was not reduced when ovendried biomass was used for cadmium concentrations from 10.0 to 500.0 mg/L. Kinetics indicated better performance of the in natura biomass. Drying at 333 K affected the uptake capacity. Results fit the Langmuir model better than the Freundlich. This process followed pseudo-second-order kinetics. Thermogravimetric and infrared analysis confirmed that no structural damage occurred after drying, and no differences between the biomasses were observed. Temperatures from 303 to 328 K affected cadmium uptake capacity.

Continuous biotreatment of copper-concentrated solutions by biosorption with Sargassum sp.

Seaweed Sargassum sp. biomass proved to be useful for the recovery of ionic copper from highly concentrated solutions simulating effluents from semiconductor production. In the case of solutions containing copper in the form of chloride, sulfate, and nitrate salts, the best pH for the recovery of copper was 4.5. It was observed that copper biosorption from copper nitrate solutions was higher than the recovery of copper from copper chloride or copper sulfate solutions. The continuous system used was constituted of four column reactors filled with the biomass of Sargassum sp. and showed high operational stability. The biomass of Sargassum sp. in the reactors was gradually saturated from the bottom to the top of each column reactor. The biomass of Sargassum sp. in the first column saturated first, followed by a gradual saturation of the remaining columns owing to preconcentration performed by the biomass in the first column. The biomass of Sargassum in the bioreactors completely biosorbed the ionic copper contained in 63 L of copper sulfate solution, 72 L of copper chloride solution, and 72 L of copper nitrate solution, all the solutions containing copper at 500 mg/L. Effluents produced after biosorption presented copper concentrations < 0.5 mg/L.

The use of waste biomass of Sargassum sp. for the biosorption of copper from simulated semiconductor effluents.

Seaweed Sargassum sp. biomass proved to be useful for the recovery of ionic copper from highly concentrated solutions simulating effluents from semiconductor production. In the case of solutions containing copper in the form of chloride, sulphate and nitrate salts, the best pH for the recovery of copper was 4.5. It was observed that copper biosorption from copper nitrate solutions was higher than the recovery of copper from copper chloride or sulphate solutions. The continuous system used was constituted of four column reactors filled with the biomass of Sargassum sp. and showed high operational stability. Biomass of Sargassum sp. in the reactors was gradually saturated from the bottom to the top of each column reactor. The biomass of Sargassum sp. in the first column was saturated first, followed by a gradual saturation of the remaining columns due to the pre-concentration caused by the biomass in the first column. The biomass of Sargassum in the bioreactors completely biosorbed the ionic copper contained in 63 L of copper sulphate solution, 72 L of copper chloride solution and 72 L of copper nitrate solution, all the solutions containing copper at 500 mg/L. Effluents produced after biosorption presented copper concentrations less than 0.5 mg/L.

Effect of process parameters on production of a biopolymer by Rhizobium sp.

The production of biopolymers by a Rhizobium strain was studied under batch and bioreactor conditions. The best viscosity levels were obtained under low mannitol concentrations as well as low agitation and aeration conditions. Infrared spectra indicated the presence of chemical groups characteristic of microbially produced biopolymers, including C = O and O-acetyl groups. Thermogravimetric analysis showed the characteristic degradation profiles of the exopolysaccharide produced (T(onset) = 290degreesC). The experimental design showed that a low substrate concentration (10.0 g/L), and low aeration (0.2 vvm) and agitation (200 rpm) levels should be used. The maximum yield of the process was a Yp/s (g/g) of 0.19 +/- 0.1, obtained under optimized conditions.

Cadmium interaction with microalgal cells, cyanobacterial cells, and seaweeds; toxicology and biotechnological potential for wastewater treatment.

The accumulation of cadmium (Cd) by Tetraselmis chuii and Spirulina maxima was studied with dead and growing cells. Results indicated that the 2 microorganisms accumulated Cd by 2 different means according to the mechanisms involved-metabolism-dependent or metabolism-independent sorption. The mechanism involved in Cd accumulation on Tetraselmis chuii was restricted to surface phenomena, while in Spirulina maxima, Cd was accumulated on different layers of the cyanobacterium surface. In order to select a suitable immobilization support for the cells, several seaweeds were tested. Two types of seaweed were selected for experiments, using a small continuous pilot unit: Sargassum sp., a strong Cd adsorber, and Ulva sp., a poor one. The column reactors of the continuous system were filled with the algal supports and covered with dense microbial biofilms of Tetraselmis chuii or Spirulina maxima. The results obtained proved the success of the association between living microbial cells and dead seaweeds for operation of the continuous system.