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. 2022 Apr 28;9(5):192.
doi: 10.3390/bioengineering9050192.

A Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB)-Biochar Reactor for the Adsorption and Biodegradation of Trichloroethylene: Design and Startup Phase

Marta M Rossi  1 , Sara Alfano  1 , Neda Amanat  1 , Fabiano Andreini  2 , Laura Lorini  1 , Andrea Martinelli  1 , Marco Petrangeli Papini  1
Affiliations

A Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB)-Biochar Reactor for the Adsorption and Biodegradation of Trichloroethylene: Design and Startup Phase

Marta M Rossi et al. Bioengineering (Basel). .

Abstract

In this work, polyhydroxy butyrate (PHB) and biochar from pine wood (PWB) are used in a mini-pilot scale biological reactor (11.3 L of geometric volume) for trichloroethylene (TCE) removal (80 mgTCE/day and 6 L/day of flow rate). The PHB-biochar reactor was realized with two sequential reactive areas to simulate a multi-reactive permeable barrier. The PHB acts as an electron donor source in the first "fermentative" area. First, the thermogravimetric (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analyses were performed. The PHB-powder and pellets have different purity (96% and 93% w/w) and thermal properties. These characteristics may affect the biodegradability of the biopolymer. In the second reactive zone, the PWB works as a Dehalococcoides support and adsorption material since its affinity for chlorinated compounds and the positive effect of the "coupled adsorption and biodegradation" process has been already verified. A specific dechlorinating enriched culture has been inoculated in the PWB zone to realize a coupled adsorption and biodegradation process. Organic acids were revealed since the beginning of the test, and during the monitoring period the reductive dichlorination anaerobic pathway was observed in the first zone; no chlorinated compounds were detected in the effluent thanks to the PWB adsorption capacity.

Keywords: Dehalococcoides; biochar; bioremediation; polyhydroxy butyrate; reductive dechlorination.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Two forms of Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB): pellets (on the left) and fine powder (on the right).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Sampling ports located on the 13 lateral gates.
Figure 3
Figure 3
(a) Schematic setup; (b) a photograph of the Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB)-biochar reactor.
Figure 4
Figure 4
TGA curves of PHB powder and pellets samples.
Figure 5
Figure 5
(a) First heating scan and (b) second heating scan of PHB powder and pellets.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Tracer test of PHB-Biochar column.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Axial profile as a function of time of (a) TCE; (b) cis-DCE and (c) VC at different operation days.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Axial profile as a function of time of (a) TCE; (b) cis-DCE and (c) VC at different operation days.
Figure 8
Figure 8
CAHs concentration in the influent and effluent of the reactor during the monitored period.
Figure 9
Figure 9
Organic acids concentration in the effluent at different operation days.
Figure 10
Figure 10
Sulfate concentration monitoring at two different operation days.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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