Author(s)

M. P. Zacharof, C. Vouzelaud & R. W. Lovitt

Abstract

Spent digester effluents were formulated into nutrient media , suitable for microbial growth of industrially important microorganisms, using filtration and diafiltration. The waste effluents were pretreated by dilution, sedimentation and sieving for the removal of large particulate material. The scheme used allowed the successful formulation particle, free sterile effluents, with an N:P ratio 36.6 The prepared microfiltered effluents were then physicochemically characterized before being assessed for their utilization as growth substrates of microorganism associated with chemical and fuels production. Microfiltered treated digested propagated with Escherichia coli NCIMB 8277, agricultural sludge based media were compared with in vitro media when supplied with or without addition carbohydrate sources. in bench scale batch aerobic. Good growth was achieved compared to synthetic growth media with the microorganism using filtrates. When the treated effluents were supplied with 2% w/v glucose solution a significant improvement in the growth rates and growth yields was achieved giving comparable performance with the synthetic media. Keywords: microfiltration, anaerobic digestion, sludge, nutrient media, bacterial growth, biofuels, acid, wastewater treatment.

Keywords

microfiltration, anaerobic digestion, sludge, nutrient media, bacterial growth, biofuels, acid, wastewater treatment.