BIODEGRADATION OF VOLATILE, HALOGENATED, ALIPHATIC COMPOUNDS

VOLATILE HALOGENATED ALIPHATIC COMPOUNDS (VHALS) ARE PREDOMINANT CONTAMINANTS AT HAZARDOUS WASTE SITES. TRICHLOREOTHYLENE (TCE) IS THE MOST COMMONLY OCCURING COMPOUND IN THIS CLASS. THESE COMPOUNDS ARE PERSISTENT AND THEREFORE REQUIRE SOME FORM OF REMEDIATION OF REMOVAL. PRESENT TECHNOLOGY UTILIZES CARBON ADSORPTION, WHICH MEANS TRANSFERRING THE HAZARDOUS COMPOUNDS TO ANOTHER MEDIUM WHICHMUST BE DECONTAMINATED BY COMBUSTION. THE PROPOSED PROJECT INTENDS TODEVELOP AN ALTERNATIVE TECHNOLOGY UTILIZING MICROBIAL DEGRADATION FOR REMEDIATION OF VHAL-CONTAMINATED SITES. THE STUDY WILL TEST MODEL LABORATORY-SCALE BIOREACTORS FOR DEGRADATION OF TCE IN WATER USING THE MICROORGANISM STRAIN G4, PREVIOUSLY ISOLATED AND SHOWN TO DEGRADE TCE TO NONTOXIC PRODUCTS. THE ORGANISM WILL ALSO BEASSESSED FOR ITS ABILITY TO DEGRADE OTHER VHALS OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERN INCLUDING TETRACHLOROETHYLENE, DICHLOROETHYLENE, VINYL CHLORIDE, AND L.L.L TRICHLOROETHANE. THE EFFICIENCY OF VHALS DEGRADATION BY STRAIN G4 WILL BE COMPARED TO OTHER MICROORGANISMS TO DETERMINE THE ORGANISMS THAT ARE MOST EFFECTIVE FOR APPLICATION. THE RESULTS WILL BE USED TO PREPARE A COST ANALYSIS FOR USING THIS TECHNOLOGY AS COMAPRED TO CARBON ADSORPTION. THE PROJECT SHOULD CULMINATE IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF A RAPID AND COST-EFFECTIVE METHOD FOR ONSITE DETOXIFICATION OF VHALS.