Tannery Wastewater Recalcitrant Compounds Foster the Selection of Fungi in Non-Sterile Conditions: A Pilot Scale Long-Term Test

Francesco Spennati, Salvatore La China, Giovanna Siracusa, Simona Di Gregorio, Alessandra Bardi, Valeria Tigini, Gualtiero Mori, David Gabriel and Giulio Munz
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Francesco Spennati: Cer2co, Consorzio Cuoiodepur, 56020 Pisa, Italy
Salvatore La China: Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio-Emilia, 41125 Modena, Italy
Giovanna Siracusa: Department of Biology, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy
Simona Di Gregorio: Department of Biology, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy
Alessandra Bardi: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Florence, 50139 Firenze, Italy
Valeria Tigini: MUT, Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, 10125 Torino, Italy
Gualtiero Mori: Cer2co, Consorzio Cuoiodepur, 56020 Pisa, Italy
David Gabriel: GENOCOV, Department of Chemical, Biological and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Bellaterra, 08193 Barcelona, Spain
Giulio Munz: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Florence, 50139 Firenze, Italy

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 12, 1-18

Abstract: This study demonstrated that a microbial community dominated by fungi can be selected and maintained in the long-term under non-sterile conditions, in a pilot-scale packed-bed reactor fed with tannery wastewater. During the start-up phase, the reactor, filled with 0.6 m 3 of polyurethane foam cubes, was inoculated with a pure culture of Aspergillus tubingensis and Quebracho tannin, a recalcitrant compound widely used by tannery industry, was used as sole carbon source in the feeding. During the start-up, fungi grew attached as biofilm in carriers that filled the packed-bed reactor. Subsequently, the reactor was tested for the removal of chemical oxygen demand (COD) from an exhaust tanning bath collected from tanneries. The entire experiment lasted 121 days and average removals of 29% and 23% of COD and dissolved organic carbon (DOC) from the tannins bath were achieved, respectively. The evolution of the microbial consortium (bacteria and fungi) was described through biomolecular analyses along the experiment and also developed as a function of the size of the support media.

Keywords: biofilm; bioremediation; community structure; fungi; wastewater treatment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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