Cometabolic Removal of Xylene Isomers by Alcaligenes xylosoxidans Y234

  • Yeom, Sung-Ho (Department of Chemical Engineering, Seoul National University) ;
  • Lee, Jung-Heon (Bioprocess Research Division, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology) ;
  • Yoo, Young Je (Corresponding author)
  • Published : 1998.06.01

Abstract

The characteristics of cometabolic removal of xylenes by Alcaligenes xylosoxidans Y234 were investigated. m-Xylene was found to be degraded while ο- and p-xylene were biotransformed into cresols in the presence of benzene or toluene. A lower level of benzene was required than that of toluene to remove the same amount of xylenes, which suggested benzene was a more effective primary substrate than toluene. ο-Xylene was found to be the most toxic to Alcaligenes xylosoxidans Y234 followed by p-xylene and m-xylene. Rates of cell decay during cometabolic removal of ο-, m-, or p-xylene were decreased by up to $76\%$ when benzene-adapted cells were inoculated. Xylenes were removed efficiently using benzene-adapted cells.

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