Co-metabolic enhancement of organic removal from waste water in the presence of high levels of alkyl paraben constituents of cosmetic and personal care products
Journal
Chemosphere
Journal Volume
179
Pages
306-315
Date Issued
2017
Author(s)
Abstract
The enhanced removal of organic material from municipal waste water containing 50 mg/L of chemical oxygen demand and a given amount of alkyl paraben using a biofilm system was investigated. The parabens used were methyl, ethyl, and propyl paraben. The experiments were conducted at influent paraben concentrations of 10 and 50 mg/L. The influent pH was measured around 4.6 because of paraben hydrolysis. The effluent pH increased due to hydrogen consumption and small molecular acid generation. The higher removal rates were observed for the paraben with longer alkyl chains, which were more hydrophobic and capable of penetrating into microbial cells. The co-existing organic constituents in municipal waste water were found to be competitive with paraben molecules for microbial degradation at low paraben loading (i.e., 10 mg/L). Instead, the co-metabolic effect was observed at a higher paraben loading (i.e., 50 mg/L) due to more active enzymatic catalysis, implying the possible enhancement or organic removal in the presence of high levels of parabens. The difference in BOD and TOC removing ratios for parabens decreased with increasing HRT, implying their better mineralization than that of municipal organic constituents. This was because the microbial organism became more adapted to the reacting system with longer HRT, and more oxygenase was produced to facilitate the catechol formation and ring-opening reactions, causing apparent enhancement in mineralization. © 2017 Elsevier Ltd
Subjects
Alkyl chain length; Biofilm system; Co-metabolism; Paraben; Phylogenetic analysis
Other Subjects
Biodegradation; Biofilms; Chemical oxygen demand; Metabolism; Mineralogy; Propylparaben; Alkyl chain lengths; Biofilm systems; Co metabolisms; Paraben; Phylogenetic analysis; Effluents; 4 hydroxybenzoic acid ester; catechol; cosmetic; ethyl paraben; hydrogen; methyl paraben; oxygenase; propyl paraben; 4 hydroxybenzoic acid ester; preservative; waste water; biofilm; biotechnology; chemical composition; chemical compound; chemical oxygen demand; genetic analysis; metabolism; microorganism; organic compound; paraben; phylogenetics; pollutant removal; PPCP; wastewater treatment; Article; biochemical oxygen demand; catalysis; chemical oxygen demand; cosmetic industry; drug industry; effluent; hydrolysis; microbial community; microbial degradation; mineralization; nonhuman; pH; retention time; ring opening; sewage; waste water management; bacterium; chemistry; drug effects; metabolism; microbiology; procedures; structure activity relation; waste water; water management; Bacteria; Biological Oxygen Demand Analysis; Cosmetics; Parabens; Preservatives, Pharmaceutical; Structure-Activity Relationship; Waste Water; Water Purification
Type
journal article