Sulfate inhibition effect on sulfate reducing bacteria

There is an increasing interest in the potential of bacterial sulfate reduction as an alternative method for sulfate removal from wastewater. Under anaerobic conditions, sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) utilize sulfate to oxidize organic compounds and generate sulfide (S2-). SRB were successfully isolated from sludge samples obtained from a local petroleum refinery, and used for sulfate removal. The effects of initial sulfate concentration, temperature and pH on the rate of bacterial growth and anaerobic sulfate removal were investigated and the optimum conditions were identified. The experimental data were used to determine the parameters of two proposed kinetic model, which take into consideration substrate inhibition effect. Keywords: Sulfate Reducing Bacteria, Sulfate, Kinetic Model, Biotreatement, Inhibition Received: 31 August 2008 / Received in revised form: 18 September 2008, Accepted: 18 September 2008 Published online: 28 September 2008