Recovery of Trichloroethylene Removal Efficiency through Short-term Toluene Feeding in a Biofilter Enriched with Pseudomonas putida F1

Trichloroethylene (TCE) is an environmental contaminant provoking genetic mutation and damages to liver and central nerve system even at low concentrations. A practical scheme is reported using toluene as a primary substrate to revitalize the biofilter column for an extended period of TCE degradation. The rate of trichloroethylene (TCE) degradation by Pseudomonas putida F1 at $25^{\circ}C$ decreased exponentially with time, without toluene feeding to a biofilter column ($11\;cm\;I.D.{\times}95\;cm$ height). The rate of decrease was 2.5 times faster at a TCE concentration of $970\;{\mu}g/L$ compared to a TCE concentration of $110\;{\mu}g/L$. The TCE itself was not toxic to the cells, but the metabolic intermediates of the TCE degradation were apparently responsible for the decrease in the TCE degradation rate. A short-term (2 h) supply of toluene ($2,200\;{\mu}g/L$) at an empty bed residence time (EBRT) of 6.4 min recovered the relative column activity by $43\%$ when the TCE removal efficiency at the time of toluene feeding was $58\%$. The recovery of the TCE removal efficiency increased at higher incoming toluene concentrations and longer toluene supply durations according to the Monod type of kinetic expressions. A longer duration ($1.4{\sim}2.4$ times) of toluene supply increased the recovery of the TCE removal efficiency by $20\%$ for the same toluene load.