• Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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• v.30 no.sup
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• pp.8.1-8.5
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• 2015

Objectives The objective of this study was to evaluate the biodegradation potential of four perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) alternatives that were developed at Changwon National University. While PFOS has been used widely in industrial and consumer products, it is known to be a persistent organic pollutant. Therefore, greener alternatives are highly desirable. Methods Biodegradation tests were run for 28 days using standard test protocols. The biochemical oxygen demand was measured daily throughout the experimental period, and the data were used to calculate the biodegradation rates. Microorganisms were isolated from the some of the tests that showed evidence of biodegradation. Results $C_8H_8F_9KO_3S$, which has the same number of carbons as the parent compound PFOS but a reduced number of fluorines, showed the highest biodegradation rate followed by $C_{10}H_8F_{13}KO_3S$. Chemical alternatives with lower number of carbons did not biodegrade readily in the experiments. Conclusions Together, these results suggest that it may be advantageous to develop PFOS alternatives with 8 carbons, the same as PFOS, but a reduced number of fluorines; as such, chemicals are more susceptible to biodegradation than the parent compound.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.44-54
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• 2003

A kinetic model for evaluating effects of surfactant on the biodegradation of HOC(hazardous organic chemicals) in soil-slurry systems was developed. The model includes the partition of HOC and surfactant, the dissolved-, micellar-, and sorbed-phase biodegradation, the enhanced solubilization of HOC by surfactant addition, and the mass transfer of HOC. Phenanthrene as HOC and Trition X-100, Tergitol NP-10, Igepal CA-720, and Brij 30 were used in the model simulations. The biodegradation rate was increased even with a small micellera-phase bioavailability. The biodegradation was not greatly enhanced due to decreased aqueous HOC concentration by increasing surfactant dose in both cases with and without micellar-phase bioavailability. The effect of sorbed-phase biodegradation on total biodegradation rate was not highly important compared to aqueous- and micellar-phase biodegradation. The model can be applied for surfactant screening and optimal design of surfactant-based soil bioremediation process.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
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• 1998.11a
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• pp.178-182
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• 1998

Bioremediation techniques have proved to be effective for restoring petroleum-contaminated soils. however some limitations still exist, especially biodegradation of hydrophobic organic compounds(HOCs) in soil is limited by their low solubility and sorption to solid surfaces. The principal objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of biosurfactant sophorolipid on the biodegradation of hydrocarbons in soil. Experimental results showed that sophorolipid was not toxic to the HOC-degrading bacteria and enhanced biodegradation of HOCs in soil better than synthetic surfactants. when these models were treated with 1000mg/soil kg sophorolipid.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
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• 2001.04a
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• pp.120-123
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• 2001

To evaluate the biodegradability of contaminants in an aquifer, computer modeling with RT3D model (Clement, 1997) was used. The RT3D model simulates the biodegradation of organic contaminants using a number of aerobic and anaerobic electron acceptors. The RT3D model was applied to a well-studied petroleum hydrocarbon plume in a shallow unconfined aquifer in Uiwang, Korea. The results of this study demonstrate tile importance of biodegradation processes in the monitored natural attenuation and in reducing contaminant concentrations in a shallow aquifer. The modeling results tell that the amount of electron acceptors is the key factor affecting biodegradation of TEX, the petroleum hydrocarbon contaminant in shallow groundwater

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
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• 2001.09a
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• pp.195-198
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• 2001

Bioremediation of hazardous hydrophobic organic compounds, such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), is a major environmental concern due to their toxic and carcinogenic properties. Bue to their low solubility in water, the compounds are microbiologically persistent. This work investigates optimal conditions to enhance the biodegradation of phenanthrene in water and soil-slurry systems. Biodegradation tests were performed with three different types of supplements: glucose as a general carbon source, salicylate as an enzyme inducer, and Triton X-100 as a surfactant. The tests indicate that glucose and Triton X-100 were not very effective to increase biodegradation rate, even though the number of microorganisms are highly increased in the case of glucose addition. Salicylate accelerated biodegradation of phenanthrene, but the addition above optimal concentration inhibited microbial growth. Salicylate is considered to be an attractive alternative for the successful bioremediation of PAH-contaminated soil.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.37-43
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• 1995

The course of biodegradation of anionic surfactants, Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonates(LAS), Sodium Lauryl Ethoxylate Sulfonate(SLES), and Sodium Lauryl Sulfonates(SLS), which are mainly used to make detergents and shampoo, was investigated. The degree of biodegradation was studied as a function of concentration, volumetric flow rate, and temperature in Naktong River. MethyleneBlue Active Substances(MBAS), Total Dissolved Organic Carbon(TOC), and Chemical Oxygen Demand(COD) were measured to evaluate the degree of biodegradation. The degree of biodegradation of LAS was highly dependent upon the concentration and was increased as the concentration was decreased and that of SLES and SLS was almost constant at the concentration of less than 200 ppm, but was much increased as the volumetric flow rate was increased or the temperature was increased.

• 한국생물공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2002.04a
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• pp.379-380
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• 2002

Biodegradable polymers have been regarded as a good alternative to solve the plastic waste problems caused by nondegradable synthetic polymers such as polyethylene and polystyrene. In the soil environment, plastics are mainly being used as a mulching film for agricultural purposes. In this research, the miscibility, tensile properties and biodegradation effect of poly-${\varepsilon}$-caprolactone(PCL) with polyvinyl chloride(PVC) have been studied. After 8 weeks of biodegradation, PCL/PVC(9/91) blend surface showed newly formed many holes. Consequently, the antiplasticization phenomenon and biodegradation were observed in the PCL/PVC blends. It was confirmed that a test for general biodegradation condition can be applied to plastic biodegradation in soil.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.474-481
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• 2000

The effects of growth substrates such as toluene and phenol on cometabolic biodegradation of trichloroethylene (TCE) by Burkholderia cepacia G4 were investigated. The dual effects of primary substrate on TCE biodegradation, stimulatory effects of toluene and phenol at low concentrations (0.5∼2 ppm & 0.1∼0.5 ppm, respectively) and a competitive inhibition at high concentration, were observed in batch experiments. These stimulatory effects of toluene and phenol were found to be due to the increments in the amount of reducing power like NADH which could be generated during the assimilation of toluene and phenol as the carbon and energy source. The efficiency of TCE biodegradation in trickling biofilm reactor (TBR) could be also enhanced up to the TCE removal efficiency of 58.1% by the supply of appropriate amounts of phenol (0.94∼4.7 ppm).

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.15 no.4
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• pp.13-20
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to develope the remediation method of contaminated soils with metals and petroleum. The diesel degrading strain was isolated and identified from the soil contaminated by petroleum at industrial sites. Diesel biodegradation experiment was performed by diesel degrading bacteria in both solution and soil slurry. Contaminated soils by Zn or As and diesel were treated consecutively by steam-vapor extraction, biodegradation, and acid washing. The strain was identified as Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and named as Pseudomonas aeruginosa TPH1. The optimal culture conditions of TPH1 were $20^{\circ}C$ and pH 7.0, 3% of diesel concentration. Biodegradation of diesel was performed using the separated strain in liquid medium, and 63% of diesel was degraded in 72 hours. And 52% of diesel was removed in the tested soils. In the treatment of contaminated soils with diesel and Zn or As, 29% ~ 44% of diesel was reduced by steamvapor extraction, 60% ~ 71% of diesel was removed after biodegradation. 47% of Zn and 96% of As were removed after acid(mixture of sulfuric and oxalic acids) washing. It is recommended that consecutive treatment method of steam-vapor extraction, biodegradation and acid washing is effective for remediation of complex contaminated soils with metals and petroleum.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.57-62
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of mixing methods on the biodegradation of sorbed naphthalene and phenanthrene in soils. Biodegradation was initiated by inoculating Pseudomonas sp. KM1 into equilibrated soil slurry vials. Four different mixing methods, including no mixing, orbital shaking, rolling and rotating were utilized to enhance the biodegradation of both naphthalene and phenanthrene. The experimental results showed that the sorbed compounds were more effectively biodegraded with rolling and rotating mixing methods. The sorbed naphthalene concentrations were reduced to 0 mg/kg via the rolling and rotating methods. However, with no mixing and the orbital shaking methods, the sorbed naphthalene concentrations were comparatively high, ranging from 2.59 to 20.45 mg/kg. Similar trends were observed for the biodegradation of phenanthrene, but the concentrations remaining were higher than those of naphthalene, due to the limited bioavailability of the sorbed phenanthrene. The rolling and rotating mixing methods are suggested can distribute bacteria uniformly in the slurry system; improve the mass transfer rate and the probability of physical contact between bacteria and the sorbed contaminants, resulting in higher bioavailability of the contaminants.