Effect of Mixing Methods on the Biodegradation of Sorbed Naphthalene and Phenanthrene in Soils

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of mixing methods on the biodegradation of sorbed naphthalene and phenanthrene in soils. Biodegradation was initiated by inoculating Pseudomonas sp. KM1 into equilibrated soil slurry vials. Four different mixing methods, including no mixing, orbital shaking, rolling and rotating were utilized to enhance the biodegradation of both naphthalene and phenanthrene. The experimental results showed that the sorbed compounds were more effectively biodegraded with rolling and rotating mixing methods. The sorbed naphthalene concentrations were reduced to 0 mg/kg via the rolling and rotating methods. However, with no mixing and the orbital shaking methods, the sorbed naphthalene concentrations were comparatively high, ranging from 2.59 to 20.45 mg/kg. Similar trends were observed for the biodegradation of phenanthrene, but the concentrations remaining were higher than those of naphthalene, due to the limited bioavailability of the sorbed phenanthrene. The rolling and rotating mixing methods are suggested can distribute bacteria uniformly in the slurry system; improve the mass transfer rate and the probability of physical contact between bacteria and the sorbed contaminants, resulting in higher bioavailability of the contaminants.