 |
|||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|||||
 |
|||||||||||
|
Web Links |
Use of soil bioreactors and microcosms
in bioremediation research
|
||||||||||
|
Steven K. Schmidt and Kate M. Scow
|
|||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||
| Studying biodegradation in soil presents unique research challenges because of the heterogeneity of soil with respect to biological niches and the spatial distribution and availability of pollutants. A variety of complex biodegradation patterns result from physical interactions between pollutants and the soil matrix and from biological interactions among different organisms. The purpose of this chapter is to give an overview of methods to study the biodegradation of chemicals in soil microcosms and bioreactors. There have been several recent reviews of methods used to study the activity of soil microorganisms in microcosms. For example, Burns reviewed the literature on microcosm studies that “explicitly attempted to understand how soil systems function in the field.” In contrast, this chapter will focus only on the common methods used to study biodegradation processes in soil. Attempts have been made to standardize the methods used by researchers in this area, and we will refer to these standard methods whenever possible. Most of the methods described are used to determine the biodegradation potential of compounds in soil or are used to elucidate the effects of isolated variables, such as temperature, soil moisture, or sorption, on the kinetics of biodegradation. We will also discuss methods used to scale up soil microcosms to treat larger volumes of contaminated soil. | |||||||||||
In: Manual of Environmental Microbiology
(C.J. Hurst et al. eds.) American Society for Microbiology Press, Washington,
D.C. (1996)
|
|||||||||||