Perspectives of sulfate reducing bioreactors in environmental biotechnology

Lens, Piet N.L.; Vallerol, M.; Esposito, Giovanni; Zandvoort, Marcel H.

doi:10.1023/a:1023207921156

Cited by 101 publications

(59 citation statements)

References 115 publications

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“…Regarding the implications of the present results for sulfate reduction bioengineering, the apparent phylotype abundance of acetotrophic sulfate reducers, suggested by the structure of clone libraries, has to be confirmed by quantitative techniques because acetate was not the only organic compound available for microorganisms. However, this study represents a significant contribution to the issue of acetate turnover [5] because the low organic content present in the effluent implies a low environmental impact associated with the discharge of the effluent water [37].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Consortium diversity of a sulfate‐reducing biofilm developed at acidic pH influent conditions in a down‐flow fluidized bed reactor

Montoya

Celis

Gallegos-García

et al. 2013

Engineering in Life Sciences

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Consortium diversity of a sulfate-reducing biofilm developed at acidic pH influent conditions in a down-flow fluidized bed reactorSulfate reduction is an appropriate approach for the treatment of effluents with sulfate and dissolved metals. In sulfate-reducing reactors, acetate may largely contribute to the residual organic matter, because not all sulfate reducers are able to couple the oxidation of acetate to the reduction of sulfate, limiting the treatment efficiency. In this study, we investigated the diversity of a bacterial community in the biofilm of a laboratory scale down-flow fluidized bed reactor, which was developed under sulfidogenic conditions at an influent pH between 4 and 6. The sequence analysis of the microbial community showed that the 16S rRNA gene sequence of almost 50% of the clones had a high similarity with Anaerolineaceae. At second place, 33% of the 16S rRNA phylotypes were affiliated with the sulfate-reducing bacteria Desulfobacca acetoxidans and Desulfatirhabdium butyrativorans, suggesting that acetotrophic sulfate reduction was occurring in the system. The remaining bacterial phylotypes were related to fermenting bacteria found at the advanced stage of reactor operation. The results indicate that the acetotrophic sulfate-reducing bacteria were able to remain within the biofilm, which is a significant result because few natural consortia harbor complete oxidizing sulfate-reducers, improving the acetate removal via sulfate reduction in the reactor.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Consortium diversity of a sulfate‐reducing biofilm developed at acidic pH influent conditions in a down‐flow fluidized bed reactor

Montoya

Celis

Gallegos-García

et al. 2013

Engineering in Life Sciences

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“…This suggests a significant broad ecological role of the SM1 biofilms and perhaps an important role in biogeochemical activities and geomicrobiological processes such as environmental sulfate reduction. Furthermore, sulfate-reducing biofilms have become the focus of biotechnological research for their potential use in sulfate-reducing bioreactors for wastewater treatment (18). This study describes the discovery and first insights into the organization, properties, and ecological significance of thus far unknown natural archaeal biofilms by using the described polyethylene net approach.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

New Insights into the Lifestyle of the Cold-Loving SM1 Euryarchaeon: Natural Growth as a Monospecies Biofilm in the Subsurface

Henneberger

Moissl

Amann

et al. 2006

Appl Environ Microbiol

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In the surface waters of sulfidic springs near Regensburg, Bavaria, Germany, the SM1 euryarchaeon, together with filamentous bacteria, forms the recently described unique string-of-pearls community. In addition to naturally occurring string-of-pearls communities, the growth of these communities was also observed on polyethylene nets provided as an artificial attachment material in the streamlets of springs. In order to learn more about the distribution and origin of the SM1 euryarchaeon and its possible occurrence in the subsurface, polyethylene nets were incubated as deeply as possible in different spring holes. After a short residence time, slime-like, milky drops, almost completely composed of SM1 euryarchaeon, were attached to the nets, indicating that this organism grows independent of a partner in deeper earth layers. A newly designed in situ biofilm trapping system allowed the quantitative harvesting of organisms exhibiting this newly discovered lifestyle of the SM1 euryarchaeon for detailed biological studies. The discovery of naturally occurring archaeal biofilms extends our knowledge of the biology and ecological significance of archaea in their environments.Sulfidic springs are fairly common around the world and have been the focus of (micro)biological work for more than 150 years (29, 42). They were classified as areas of high bioactivity, as visible by the development of extended (white) mats representing vast populations of various genera of filamentous sulfur bacteria (23). As the main focus for our detailed investigations of microbial communities in nongeothermal environments, we have chosen a sulfurous marsh, the "Sippenauer Moor" near Regensburg, Germany (32). In this area, cold water (ϳ10°C) from deeper earth layers reaches the surface and emerges from the ground between rocks and tree roots, forming small streamlets that merge in a large pond. The intake of atmospheric oxygen causes the appearance of white microbial mats in the streamlets, indicating high bioactivity. In these sulfidic streamlets, growth of a unique microbial community occurs, with microbes forming a string-of-pearls-like, macroscopically visible structure: single, whitish pearls with diameters of up to 3 mm are connected to each other by thin, white-colored threads. In the pearl interior, the nonmethanogenic SM1 euryarchaeon is predominant, representing a deep phylogenetic branch within the 16S rRNA tree (32). The exteriors of the pearls and the connecting threads are mainly composed of a single phylotype, the filamentous sulfide-oxidizing bacterium Thiothrix sp. (21).During a recent microbial survey of cold sulfidic springs in Bavaria, Germany, a second type of microbial string-of-pearls community was discovered in the streamlet of the "Islinger Mühlbach" (Regensburg, Southern Germany) (31). The SM1 euryarchaeon was again predominant in the pearl interior, while its partner was represented by the filamentous so-called IMB1 ε-proteobacterium, most probably outcompeting Thiothrix at the low in situ oxygen concentrations. The ...

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“…Currently, biological SR is an established biotechnological process for the treatment of inorganic waste streams containing sulfur compounds and/or metals (Weijma et al 2002;Lens et al 2002). Oxidized sulfur compounds can be converted to elemental sulfur by applying subsequently SR and partial sulfide oxidation (Janssen et al 1999;van den Bosch 2008 Veeken et al 2003).…”

Section: Removal and Recovery Of Metals And Oxidizedmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biotechnological aspects of sulfate reduction with methane as electron donor

Meulepas

Stams

Lens

2010

Rev Environ Sci Biotechnol

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Biological sulfate reduction can be used for the removal and recovery of oxidized sulfur compounds and metals from waste streams. However, the costs of conventional electron donors, like hydrogen and ethanol, limit the application possibilities. Methane from natural gas or biogas would be a more attractive electron donor. Sulfate reduction with methane as electron donor prevails in marine sediments. Recently, several authors succeeded in cultivating the responsible microorganisms in vitro. In addition, the process has been studied in bioreactors. These studies have opened up the possibility to use methane as electron donor for sulfate reduction in wastewater and gas treatment. However, the obtained growth rates of the responsible microorganisms are extremely low, which would be a major limitation for applications. Therefore, further research should focus on novel cultivation techniques.

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Perspectives of sulfate reducing bioreactors in environmental biotechnology

Cited by 101 publications

References 115 publications

Consortium diversity of a sulfate‐reducing biofilm developed at acidic pH influent conditions in a down‐flow fluidized bed reactor

Consortium diversity of a sulfate‐reducing biofilm developed at acidic pH influent conditions in a down‐flow fluidized bed reactor

New Insights into the Lifestyle of the Cold-Loving SM1 Euryarchaeon: Natural Growth as a Monospecies Biofilm in the Subsurface

Biotechnological aspects of sulfate reduction with methane as electron donor

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