• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
• /
• v.21 no.5
• /
• pp.374-378
• /
• 2012

Biofouling causes many problem in industrial processes, medical health industries, water utilities and our daily life. So detecting formation of biofilm on the surface of medical appliance, water pipe and industrial utility is highly important to prevent the problem caused by biofouling. In this study, we suggest an electrochemical sensor for detecting biofilm. We fabricated the electrochemical sensor in MEMS process and cultivated two different kinds of Pseudomonas aeruginosa RpoN type and Wild type on the surface of electrochemical sensor. Each group of Pseudomonas aeruginosa was cultivated according to the hours of 2, 4, 6, 8, 12 and 24. Then we investigated changes in degree of biofilm cultivation using cyclic voltammetry. As a result, it was observed that peak of the cyclic voltammetry curve is increased according as the biofilm growth on the surface of electrochemical sensor. Also we can discern between Pseudomonas aeruginosa RpoN type and Wild type.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
• /
• v.34 no.6
• /
• pp.1867-1870
• /
• 2013

• Environmental Engineering Research
• /
• v.15 no.3
• /
• pp.141-147
• /
• 2010

The objective of this study was to assess the biofouling characteristics of the Bacillus biofilm formed on reverse osmosis (RO) membranes. For the study, a sporogenic Bacillus sp. was isolated from the seawater intake to a RO process, with two distinct sets of experiments performed to grow the Bacillus biofilm on the RO membrane using a lab-scale crossflow membrane test unit. Two operational feds were used, 9 L sterile-filtered seawater and 109 Bacillus cells, with flow rates of 1 L/min, and a constant 800 psi-pressure and pH 7.6. From the results, the membrane with more fouling, in which the observed permeate flux decreased to 33% of its initial value, showed about 10 and 100 times greater extracellular polymeric substances and spoOA genes expressions, respectively, than the those of the less fouled membrane (flux declined to 20% of its initial value). Interestingly; however, the number of culturable Bacillus sp. in the more fouled membrane was about 10 times less than that of the less fouled membrane. This indicated that while the number of Bacillus had less relevance with respect to the extent of biofouling, the activation of the genes of interest, which is initiative of biofilm development, had a more positive effect on biofouling than the mass of an individual Bacillus bacterium.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.27 no.3
• /
• pp.573-583
• /
• 2017

Biofilm formation on the membrane surface results in the loss of permeability in membrane bioreactors (MBRs) for wastewater treatment. Studies have revealed that cellulose is not only produced by a number of bacterial species but also plays a key role during formation of their biofilm. Hence, in this study, cellulase was introduced to a MBR as a cellulose-induced biofilm control strategy. For practical application of cellulase to MBR, a cellulolytic (i.e., cellulase-producing) bacterium, Undibacterium sp. DM-1, was isolated from a lab-scale MBR for wastewater treatment. Prior to its application to MBR, it was confirmed that the cell-free supernatant of DM-1 was capable of inhibiting biofilm formation and of detaching the mature biofilm of activated sludge and cellulose-producing bacteria. This suggested that cellulase could be an effective anti-biofouling agent for MBRs used in wastewater treatment. Undibacterium sp. DM-1-entrapping beads (i.e., cellulolytic-beads) were applied to a continuous MBR to mitigate membrane biofouling 2.2-fold, compared with an MBR with vacant-beads as a control. Subsequent analysis of the cellulose content in the biofilm formed on the membrane surface revealed that this mitigation was associated with an approximately 30% reduction in cellulose by cellulolytic-beads in MBR.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
• /
• v.23 no.6
• /
• pp.811-823
• /
• 2009

Seawater desalination process using a reverse osmosis (RO) membrane has been considered as one of the most promising technologies in solving the water scarcity problems in many arid regions around the world. To protect RO membrane in the process, a thorough understanding of the pretreatment process is particularly needed. Seawater organic matters (SWOMs) may form a gel layer on the membrane surface, which will increase a concentration polarization. As the SWOMs can be utilized as a substrate, membrane biofouling will be progressed on the RO membrane surface, resulting in the flux decline and increase of trans-membrane pressure drop and salt passage. In the middle of disinfection, an optimal chlorine dosage and neutralizer (sodium bisulfite, SBS) should be practiced to prevent oxidizing the surface of RO membranes. Additional fundamental research including novel non-susceptible biofouling membranes would be necessary to provide a guide line for the proper pretreatment process.

• Journal of the Korean Vacuum Society
• /
• v.16 no.1
• /
• pp.65-73
• /
• 2007

The control of surface properties and spatial presentation of functional molecules within a microfluidic channel is important for the development of diagnostic assays, microreactors, and for performing fundamental studies of cell biology and fluid mechanics. Here, we present soft lithographic methods to create robust microchannels with patterned microstructures inside the channel. The patterned regions were protected from oxygen plasma by controlling the dimensions of the poly(dimethylsiloxane)(PDMS) mold as well as the sequence of fabrication steps. The approach was used to pattern a non-biofouling polyethylene glycol(PEG)-based copolymer or the polysaccharide hyaluronic acid(HA) within microfluidic channels. These non-biofouling patterns were then used to fabricate arrays of fibronectin(FN) and bovine serum albumin(BSA) as well as mammalian cells.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
• /
• v.40 no.2
• /
• pp.83-91
• /
• 2012

Quorum sensing (QS) is a cell-to-cell communication system, which is used by many bacteria to regulate diverse gene expression in response to changes in population density. Bacteria recognize the differences in cell density by sensing the concentration of signal molecules such as N-acyl-homoserine lactones (AHL) and autoinducer-2 (AI-2). In particular, QS plays a key role in biofilm formation, which is a specific bacterial group behavior. Biofilms are dense aggregates of packed microbial communities that grow on surfaces, and are embedded in a self-produced matrix of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). QS regulates biofilm dispersal as well as the production of EPS. In some bacteria, biofilm formations are regulated by c-di-GMP-mediated signaling as well as QS, thus the two signaling systems are mutually connected. Biofilms are one of the major virulence factors in pathogenic bacteria. In addition, they cause numerous problems in industrial fields, such as the biofouling of pipes, tanks and membrane bioreactors (MBR). Therefore, the interference of QS, referred to as quorum quenching (QQ) has received a great deal of attention. To inhibit biofilm formation, several strategies to disrupt bacterial QS have been reported, and many enzymes which can degrade or modify the signal molecule AHL have been studied. QQ enzymes, such as AHL-lactonase, AHL-acylase, and oxidoreductases may offer great potential for the effective control of biofilm formation and membrane biofouling in the future. This review describes the process of bacterial QS, biofilm formation, and the close relationship between them. Finally, QQ enzymes and their applications for the reduction of biofouling are also discussed.

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
• /
• v.31 no.1
• /
• pp.51-57
• /
• 2009

Biofouling in seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) desalination process causes many problems such as flux decline, biodegradation of membrane, increased cleaning time, and increased energy consumption and operational cost. Therefore biofouling is considered as the most critical problem in system operation. To control biofouling in early stage, detection of the most problematic bacteria causing biofouling is required. In this study, six model bacteria were chosen; Bacillus sp., Flavobacterium sp., Mycobacterium sp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Pseudomonas fluorescens, and Rhodobacter sp. based on report in the literature and phylogenetic analysis of seawater intake and fouled RO membrane. The adhesion to RO membrane, the high pressure resistance, and the hydrophobicity of the six model bacteria were examined to find out their fouling potential. Rhodobacter sp. and Mycobacterium sp. were found to attach very well to RO membrane surface compared to others used in this study. The test of hydrophobicity revealed that the bacteria which have high hydrophobicity or similar contact angle with RO membrane ($63^{\circ}$ of contact angle) easily attached to RO membrane surface. P. aeruginosa which is highly hydrophilic ($23.07^{\circ}$ of contact angle) showed the least adhesion characteristic among six model bacteria. After applying a pressure of 800 psi to the sample, Rhodobacter sp. was found to show the highest reduction rate; with 59-73% of the cells removed from the membrane under pressure. P. fluorescens on the other hand analyzed as the most pressure resistant bacteria among six model bacteria. The difference between reduction rates using direct counting and plate counting indicates that the viability of each model bacteria was affected significantly from the high pressure. Most cells subjected to high pressure were unable to form colonies even thought they maintained their structural integrity.

• Proceedings of KOSOMES biannual meeting
• /
• 2018.06a
• /
• pp.10-10
• /
• 2018

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.10 no.4
• /
• pp.554-558
• /
• 2000

Bacteria were isolated and identified from an advanced high-purity water system that supplies ultra-high purity water (UHPW) for 16-megabyte DRAM semiconductor manufacturing. Scanning electron microscopic and microbiological observations revealed that the primary source of the bacteria isolated from the UHPW was detached cells from biofilms developed on the pipe wall through which the UHPW, a man-made and extremely nutrient poor environment, was passing. About 63-65% of the bacteria isolated from the UHPW and the pipe wall were Gram-positive, whereas only 10% of the bacteria isolated from the feed water were Gram-positive. The of Gram-positive bacteria and seven genera of Gram-negative bacteria. Strains of the UHPW bacteria effectively adhered to and formed a biofilm on the surface of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipe.