• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.54-62
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• 2014

To better understand dissimilatory iron and sulfate reduction (DIR and DSR) by subsurface microorganisms, we investigated the effects of sulfate and electron donors on the microbial goethite (${\alpha}$-FeOOH) reduction. Batch systems were created 1) with acetate or glucose (donor), 2) with goethite and sulfate (acceptor), and 3) with aquifer sediment (microbial source). With 0.2 mM sulfate, goethite reduction coupled with acetate oxidation was limited. However, with 10 mM sulfate, 8 mM goethite reduction occurred with complete sulfate reduction and x-ray absorption fine-structure analysis indicated the formation of iron sulfide. This suggests that goethite reduction was due to the sulfide species produced by DSR bacteria rather than direct microbial reaction by DIR bacteria. Both acetate and glucose promoted goethite reduction. The rate of goethite reduction was faster with glucose, while the extent of goethite reduction was higher with acetate. Sulfate reduction (10 mM) occurred only with acetate. The results suggest that glucose-fermenting bacteria rapidly stimulated goethite reduction, but acetate-oxidizing DSR bacteria reduced goethite indirectly by producing sulfides. This study suggests that the availability of specific electron donor and sulfate significantly influence microbial community activities as well as goethite transformation, which should be considered for the bioremediation of contaminated environments.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.28 no.10
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• pp.851-861
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• 2019

In this study, we performed a sediment elution experiment to evaluate water quality in terms of phosphorus, as influenced by the dissolved oxygen consumed by sediments. Three separate model column treatments, namely, raw, calcined, and sonicated oyster shell powders, were used in this experiment. Essential phosphorus fractions were examined to verify their roles in nutrient release from sediment based on correlation analyses. When treated with calcined or sonicated oyster shell powder, the sediment-water interface became "less anaerobic," thereby producing conditions conducive to partial oxidation and activities of aerobic bacteria. Sediment Oxygen Demand (SOD) was found to be closely correlated with the growth of algae, which confirmed an intermittent input of organic biomass at the sediment surface. SOD was positively correlated with exchangeable and loosely adsorbed phosphorus and organic phosphorus, owing to the accumulation of unbound algal biomass-derived phosphates in sediment, whereas it was negatively correlated with ferric iron-bound phosphorus or calcium fluorapatite-bound phosphorus, which were present in the form of "insoluble" complexes, thereby facilitating the free migration of sulfate-reducing bacteria or limiting the release from complexes, depending on applied local conditions. PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis revealed that iron-reducing bacteria were the dominant species in control and non-calcined oyster shell columns, whereas certain sulfur-oxidizing bacteria were identified in the column treated with calcined oyster powder.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.243-247
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• 2003

The microbial immobilization media with curdlan and activated carbon which has great immobilization capacity has been developed. Characteristics of porosity and mechanical strength of this support media are dependent on manufacturing method. The support media showed the best cell immobilization performance when the ratio of curdlan and activated carbon was 30 g/L to 6 g/L in this study. The immobilization of iron-oxidizing bacteria on the supporting particles was photographed with a scanning electron microscope. Since cell concentration on the surface of supporting particle increased with the reaction time, the iron oxidation rate also increased.

• Journal of the Mineralogical Society of Korea
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.91-99
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• 2011

The turbidity in several wells of Samdong-myeon, Ulsan, exceeded potable groundwater standard (1 NTU). Mineralogical analysis showed that the fine suspended particles are ferrihydrite spheres with a size of less than $0.5\;{\mu}m$ and helical iron-oxidizing bacterial filaments, and their aggregates. Ferrihydrite was almost amorphous only showing two electron diffraction rings, and contained Si and P. Helical bacterial filaments were almost replaced by ferrihydrite. The helical bacteria have played an important role in the ferrihydrite formation by becoming the loci for ferrihydrite precipitation as well as oxidizing ferrous iron. The physicochemical conditions of low pH, low redox potential, high Ca concentration, and high alkalinity are consistent with the hydrogeochemical characteristics of carbonate groundwater, implicating that the inflow of deep ferriferous carbonate groundwater and its oxidation have caused the ferrihydrite turbidity in several wells of the study area.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.82-89
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• 1984

These studies were carried out to investigate the effects of rice straw on microflora in relation to nitrogen metabolism in submerged soil. Rice plants were cultured in submerged soil to which rice straw was applied. In the submerged soil applied with rice straw the value of Eh lowered. pH was higher in the upper layer than in the lower. The content of iron(II) in submerged soil increased, while that of ammonium nitrogen decreased when rice straw was applied and nitrate-nitrogen was hardly detected during the rice cultivation period Under application of rice straw the number of denitrifying bacteria observed to increase at the early growing stage of rice plant and to decrease thereafter, and that of nitrate reducing bacteria increased at the late growing stage. The number of ammonium oxidizing bacteria and that of nitrite oxidizing bacteria decreased continually but the latter were rather sharply decreased.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.370-378
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• 2007

A superoxide dismutase was purified 62-fold in seven steps to homogeneity from Methylobacillus sp. strain SK1, an obligate methanol-oxidizing bacterium, with a yield of 9.6%. The final specific activity was 4,831 units per milligram protein as determined by an assay based on a 50% decrease in the rate of cytochrome c reduction. The molecular weight of the native enzyme was estimated to be 44,000. Sodium dodecyl sulfate gel electrophoresis revealed two identical subunits of molecular weight 23,100. The isoelectric point of the purified enzyme was found to be 4.4. Maximum activity of the enzyme was measured at pH 8. The enzyme was stable at pH range from 6 to 8 and at high temperature. The enzyme showed an absorption peak at 280 nm with a shoulder at 292 nm. Hydrogen peroxide and sodium azide, but not sodium cyanide, was found to inhibit the purified enzyme. The enzyme activity in cell-free extracts prepared from cells grown in manganese-rich medium, however, was not inhibited by hydrogen peroxide but inhibited by sodium azide. The activity in cell extracts from cells grown in iron-rich medium was found to be highly sensitive to hydrogen peroxide and sodium azide. One mol of native enzyme was found to contain 1.1 g-atom of iron and 0.7 g-atom of manganese. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of the purified enzyme was Ala-Tyr-Thr-Leu-Pro-Pro-Leu-Asn-Tyr-Ala-Tyr. The superoxide dismutase of Methylobacillus sp. strain SK1 was found to have antigenic sites identical to those of Methylobacillus glycogenes enzyme. The enzyme, however, shared no antigenic sites with Mycobacterium sp. strain JC1, Methylovorus sp. strain SS1, Methylobacterium sp. strain SY1, and Methylosinus trichosproium enzymes.

• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
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• v.49 no.12
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• pp.956-966
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• 2011

Bioleaching studies of metals from a spent catalyst were conducted using both adapted and unadapted bacterial cultures. The bacterium used in this experiment was Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans. A comparison of the kinetics of leaching was made between the two cultures by varying the leaching parameters, including the pulp density, particle size and temperature. Both cultures showed similar effects with respect to the above parameters, but the leaching rates of all metals were higher with the adapted compared to the unadapted bacterial cultures. The leaching reactions were continued for 240 h in the case of the unadapted bacterial culture, but only for 40 h in the case of the adapted bacterial culture. The leaching reactions followed first order kinetics. In addition, the kinetics of leaching was concluded to be a diffusion control model; therefore, the product layers were impervious.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.91-99
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• 2013

Steel industry which has been accomplishes the base of our country economy, automobile and electronic industry are taking charge of the role, whose electroplating is important. Large amount of wastewater and various metal salts, including hazardous materials was generated from the electroplating pre-treatment, plating, washing and post-plating. Currently, the general wastewater follows in the environmental law and neutralization after controlling, sludge where the various metal is mixed reclaims below multiple regulative and trust it is controlling. The sludge which includes the gas price metal reclaims in the field and trust it controls. a reclamation price of land it is insufficient but and the control expense holds plentifully and it loses the gas price metal which is valuable. Consequently, The research regarding to recover a gas price metal actively from this waste water, it is advanced. A new method to recover valuable metals from electroplating wastewater synthesis of metal sulfides using topical methods utilizing iron oxidizing bacteria, reagent of sulfides and solvent extraction using an organic solvent, such as the development of the law to recover these metals and metal sulfides of wastewater using selective recovery have been studied. By using these wastewater treatment method under frequency above 95%, it has been obtained the valuable metal from the wastewater, where the metal ion of Fe, Cu, Zn and Ni complexes was mixed. As we discuss the wastewater, which has been discharged from electroplating process, it is important and will be applied to the resources of metal in the urban mine.

• Resources Recycling
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.3-15
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• 2008

Different toxic wastes are disposed of in our surroundings and these will ultimately threaten the existence of living organisms. Biohydrometallurgy, which includes the processes of bioleaching and bioremediation through the activities of microorganisms such as bacterial or fungal species, is a technology that has the potential to overcome many environmental problems at a reasonable economic cost. Bioleaching were carried out for dissolution of metals from different materials using most important metal mobilizing bacteria such as Thiobacillus ferrooxidans, Thiobacillus thiooxidans and Laptospirillum ferrooxidans. According to the reaction, bioleaching is parted as direct and indirect mechanism. In direct mechanism the bacteria oxidize the sulphides minerals by accepting electron and producing sulphuric acid in leaching media for their growth and metabolism. In other hand the indirect bioleaching is demonstrated as the oxidation of sulphides mineral by the oxidant like $Fe^{3+}$ produced by the iron oxidizing bacteria. Through this process, substantial amount of metal can be recovered from low-grade ores, concentrates, industrial wastes like sludge, tailings, fly ash, slag, electronic scrap, spent batteries and spent catalysts. This may be alternative technology to solve the high deposition of waste, which moves toward a healthy environment and green world.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.124-130
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• 1999

To evaluate the technical of microbial coal desulfurization during the storage in coal dumps, microbial pyrite oxidation in a packed column reactor with Thiobacillus ferrooxidans has been investigated. For microbial desulfurization in a packed reactor system, coal particle size over 1.0 mm with uniform size distribution seems to be most suitable as fas as drainage behavior and accessability of pyrite are concerned. When coal samples of 1∼2 and 2∼4 mm particle size were size were used, about 32∼42% of pyritic sulfur was removed within 70 days. The rate of pyritic sulfur oxidation was in the range of 348∼803 mg S/kg coal ·d, and the sulfur removal rates in packed columns were about 15∼25% of those in suspension cultures. Without any circulation of liquid medium, microbial coal desulfurization could be possible by the inoculation of T. ferrooxidans along on the coal dump. It was concluded that a microbial percolation process is one of possible processes for the desulfurization of high sulfur coal during a long-term storage.