Installation for testing the ability of oil-oxidizing microorganisms

Abstract

The paper proposes an experimental setup simulating a storage tank for petroleum products under agricultural conditions. The research was carried out with periodic cultivation of microorganisms. The growth activity and degree of utilization of hydrocarbon-containing compounds of several strains of microorganisms were checked. The results of quantitative determination of hydrocarbons show that the examined contaminants contain hydrocarbons with a chain length from C8 to C27. The latter contain on average 68.7 % n-alkanes, 29.2 % isoalkanes and a relatively small amount of aromatic hydrocarbons. The results of studies to determine the dependence of substrate consumption and biomass growth on the duration of the process are presented.