Bioremediation

7 Key excerpts on "Bioremediation"

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  eBook - ePub

  Innovative Bio-Based Technologies for Environmental Remediation

  • Pardeep Singh, Chaudhery Mustansar Hussain, Mika Sillanpää, Pardeep Singh, Chaudhery Mustansar Hussain, Mika Sillanpää(Authors)
  • 2022(Publication Date)
  • CRC Press

    (Publisher)

  Much of the attention has been relocated from conventional to biological methods, for instance, Bioremediation, which is efficacious, socio-economically palatable, and environmentally sustainable. Bioremediation has been utilised by humans for a long time; farmers have depended on composting to decay solid waste caused by plants and animals. In terms of novel biotechnology, Bioremediation has been explored since the 1940s as a route to speed up natural biodegradation processes. Bioremediation is the biotechnology of exploiting metabolic activities of microorganisms’, to deteriorate the environmental pollutants into non-toxic forms. It employs biological agents like plants, fungi, or bacteria to counteract or degrade toxic pollutants.

  Conclusively, the practice of Bioremediation, which is eco-friendly, potent, and cost effective, will lessen health risks, restore biodiversity heritage, and refurbish the damaged ecosystem naturally. Besides, indirect or direct occupation opportunities could be generated through well-planned Bioremediation schemes; it will also enable sustainable management of polluted soils. All of this is encouraging and will assist the incorporation of new sustainable socio-economic green undertakings.

  Bioremediation has the efficiency to reinstate polluted environments economically, yet effectually. A cause of uncertainty is created due to a lack of adequate knowledge about the effect of several environmental factors on the degree and rate of biodegradation. It is imperative to mention that numerous field tests have not been appropriately designed, well controlled, or properly evaluated, leading to ambiguity when choosing response options. Hence, future field investigations should endow serious efforts in implementing scientifically appropriate methodologies and obtaining the best possible quality data.

  Furthermore, the exploration of an inclusive diversity of microbes with detoxification capabilities is still lacking. The scant knowledge about microorganisms and their natural role in the environment could influence the adequacy of their uses. Comprehensive knowledge of microbial diversity in a polluted environment is vital to get a deeper insight into potent degraders and to understand their biochemistry and genetics that will result in developing proper Bioremediation approaches; thereby preserving the enduring sustainability of marine and terrestrial ecosystems. However, metabolomics, proteomics, and genomics of microbes associated with concerned Bioremediation will be advantageous in exploring possible solutions pointing to particular contaminants. Subsequently, the following areas associated with Bioremediation shall be explored:

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  eBook - ePub

  Environmental Biotechnology

  Biodegradation, Bioremediation, and Bioconversion of Xenobiotics for Sustainable Development

  • Jeyabalan Sangeetha, Devarajan Thangadurai, Muniswamy David, Mohd Azmuddin Abdullah, Jeyabalan Sangeetha, Devarajan Thangadurai, Muniswamy David, Mohd Azmuddin Abdullah(Authors)
  • 2016(Publication Date)
  • Apple Academic Press

    (Publisher)

  However, these treatment methods are costly and difficult to adapt in case of soil contaminated sites. Therefore biological methods of remediation generally called as Bioremediation technologies become suitable in such cases. Some of organic pollutants are toxic and difficult to degrade compounds. Because of their insolubility, they accumulate in sediments and thus become a serious problem. Bioremediation is a biotechnology that uses microorganisms to degrade and detoxify pollutants causing environmental contamination. This technology is applied for treatment of wastes. The Bioremediation can be carried out at the site of contamination (in situ) or the wastes are transported at some suitable site for treatment (ex situ). Exploration of plants for remediation is an emerging cost-effective approach. The strategies involving plants are commonly called phytotechnologies which include phytoremediation. Phytotechnologies are defined as the use of plants to remediate, treat, stabilize, or control contaminated substrates, and phytoremediation is one of these, specifically dedicated to the removal or destruction of the contaminant. Phytotechnologies and phytoremediation exploit the natural plant physiological processes. Environmental pollution by organic nitro- and chlorinated compounds, hydrocarbons, pesticides, and others, is caused mainly by human activities (Megharaj et al., 2011). Microorganisms are employed to develop Bioremediation technology for degradation of organic pollutants. This technology suffers from some limitations in applications to contaminated sites. Other technologies like composting, phytoremediation, and related others are suggested. Finding sources of pollutants is important to know their status in sediments

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  eBook - ePub

  Encyclopedia of Soil Science

  • Rattan Lal(Author)
  • 2017(Publication Date)
  • CRC Press

    (Publisher)

  Biodegradation and Bioremediation Owen P. Ward Ajay Singh

  Department of Biology, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

  Abstract

  Biodegradation processes mediate recycling of organic materials in the environment. In Bioremediation processes, microorganisms and plants participate in the biodegradation and removal of hazardous contaminants to restore the polluted environment. Although microorganisms thrive in aqueous environments, the majority of organic chemicals and environmental contaminants are hydrophobic and sorb to soil particles. To access these contaminants, microbes may interact directly with the contaminant or soil particulates or both or secrete biosurfactants to mobilize the contaminant into the aqueous phase. A variety of in situ and ex situ Bioremediation strategies are employed, aimed at promoting the biodegradation of chemical pollutants present in the contaminated medium.

  INTRODUCTION

  In their most general sense, biodegradation processes are central to all biological systems. In these processes, cells transform and recycle biological and synthetic chemicals and materials into smaller molecules to generate energy and/or metabolic intermediates needed for cell functioning including maintenance, biosynthesis, and growth. Indeed, these processes also contribute to the unique adaptation properties of organisms, e.g., enabling microbes to adjust to changing environments by making the requisite biochemical and physiological changes mediated by biodegradative and biosynthetic metabolic processes. Bioremediation represents an important applied segment among these biodegradation processes in which technologies are generally engineered and optimized to exploit the same biodegradation capabilities especially of microbes, for the removal of organic contaminants and, sometimes, metal contaminants from the environment. The principal objective of this entry is to provide an overview of Bioremediation processes and systems as well as a perspective on developments and future prospects. General principles of biodegradation processes are first considered to provide a context for addressing Bioremediation technologies.

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  eBook - ePub

  Basic Concepts in Environmental Biotechnology

  • Neetu Sharma, Abhinashi Singh Sodhi, Navneet Batra, Neetu Sharma, Abhinashi Singh Sodhi, Navneet Batra(Authors)
  • 2021(Publication Date)
  • CRC Press

    (Publisher)

  7Bioremediation

  Concepts and Application

  Jing He, Xueyan Chen and Varenyam Achal

  DOI: 10.1201/9781003131427-7

  CONTENTS

  7.1 Introduction 7.2 Importance of Bioremediation 7.3 Classification of Bioremediation 7.3.1 Microbial Remediation Technology 7.3.2 Phytoremediation 7.3.2.1 Enhancement of Phytoremediation 7.4 Type of Bioremediation 7.4.1 Soil Bioremediation

  7.4.1.1 Ex Situ Bioremediation of Soil

  7.4.1.2 In Situ Bioremediation of Soil

  7.4.2 Water Bioremediation 7.4.3 Sediment Bioremediation 7.5 Bioremediation Applications 7.6 Conclusion

  7.1 INTRODUCTION

  Bioremediation is defined as a process that uses microorganisms, plants and lower animals or their enzymes to remediate polluted sites for recovering their original conditions. This technology utilizes some natural characteristics of organisms, including metabolism activities and extracellular secretions, for environmental remediation.

  Bioremediation was used for the first time in 1972 to treat gasoline leakage in Pennsylvania, USA. Following this, the concept of using metal-accumulating plants to clean up sites contaminated with heavy metal(loid)s was also presented in 1983. Since 1991, the United States started implementing Bioremediation technology to control hazardous environmental pollutants in soil, groundwater and marine environments. Since then, Bioremediation has been identified independently as an emerging technology for pollution remediation on a large scale. Furthermore, many types of remediation technologies, such as bacterial remediation, phytoremediation, fungal remediation, animal remediation and even combined remediation methods, have developed in the field of Bioremediation.

  7.2 IMPORTANCE OF Bioremediation

  Bioremediation usually utilizes the functions of biological metabolism (of plants, microorganisms and protozoa), absorption and transformation to remove or degrade environmental pollutants and achieve the goals of environmental purification as well as ecological recovery. Therefore, it is significant for people to know how organisms remediate contaminated soil, water or marine areas and why many researchers widely apply this method.

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  eBook - ePub

  Soil and Groundwater Remediation

  Fundamentals, Practices, and Sustainability

  • Chunlong Zhang(Author)
  • 2019(Publication Date)
  • Wiley

    (Publisher)

  The term Bioremediation is commonly reserved for the treatment of soil and groundwater. While Bioremediation can be referred to microbe‐based oil spills in surface water remedy, it is rarely used to refer to conventional technologies for the biological treatment of domestic and industrial wastewater. An example of these Bioremediation techniques include, but are certainly not limited to, in situ and ex situ soil and groundwater treatment methods listed in Table 6.4. Environmental biotechnologies rely on indigenous or genetically modified microorganisms of various types to degrade and detoxify contaminants, such as the use of anaerobic, anoxic, and aerobic microorganisms. The use of native and genetically modified higher plants capable of metabolizing contaminants also belongs to the realm of environmental biotechnologies, such as phytoremediation and wetland‐based treatment systems. In many cases, environmental biotechnologies rely on the stimulation or enhancement of soil and groundwater conditions because of the abundant nature of indigenous bacteria or bacterial consortia in the environment. These optimal conditions include oxygen, electron acceptors, nutrients, soil moisture, pH, etc. Another area of environmental biotechnological application is the biologically based monitoring. Biosensors are essential tools in biomonitoring of environment and treatment processes. Combinations of biosensors in array can be used to measure concentration or toxicity of various chemical substances. Microarrays for simultaneous qualitative or quantitative detection of different microorganisms or specific genes in environmental samples are also useful in the monitoring of microorganisms in Bioremediation systems. 9.1.1 Microorganisms and Microbial Growth 9.1.1.1 Types of Microorganisms Herein, we first introduce the classifications (taxonomy) of life and explain why bacteria are particularly important in Bioremediation systems

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  eBook - ePub

  Environmental Microbiology for Engineers

  • Volodymyr Ivanov(Author)
  • 2020(Publication Date)
  • CRC Press

    (Publisher)
• 3. Clean-up goals may not be achievable during Bioremediation because some contaminants are nonbiodegradable or only partially biodegradable, or because the levels of contaminant removal cannot be attained microbially. As the contaminant levels are diminished, the biological degradation slows down, and the microorganisms may switch to other energy sources or stop growing.
• 4. Bioremediation may be relatively time-consuming. The time required generally depends on the rate at which the contaminants are degraded.

Bioremediation and Biodecontamination of Construction Sites through Biocementation

When a site can be used for construction but is polluted with chemical substances above permitted levels, microbial remediation of this site could be the cheapest option in comparison with a mechanical or chemical cleaning of the construction site. Bioremediation can be done using such biogeochemical reactions as oxidation and reduction, and by transforming the pollutants to non-toxic or not-dissolved substances. Meanwhile, the Bioremediation of construction sites through biocementation is a relatively new area. The aim of this method of construction biotechnology is to prevent the dispersion of hazardous substances from the accidentally polluted site to environment. It is performed through either the biocementation of soil or the formation of a biogeochemical barrier. Microbial biocementation co-precipitates soil pollutants: radionuclides 90 Sr, 60