The Effect of Bioaugmentation of Petroleum Contaminated Soil by Microorganisms Immobilized on Mineral Carriers

Abstract

Abstract. Oil pollution may arise either accidentally or operationally whenever oil is produced, transported, stored and processed or used at sea or on land. Oil spills are a major menace to the environment as they severely damage the surrounding ecosystems. To improve the survival and retention of the bioremediation agents in the contaminated sites, bacterial cells must be immobilized. This work presents the results of studies on the oil-oxidizing activity of microorganisms-oil-degraders cells free and immobilized on mineral sorbents of cells, carried out in the field at the Karazhanbas field in the Mangistau region. The highest oil destruction activity was observed in microorganisms-oil destructors immobilized on expanded clay. Keywords: Bacteria, biodegradation, crude oil, soil, immobilization.