Effects of exogenous acylated homoserine lactones on biofilms in biofilters for gaseous toluene treatment

doi:10.1007/s11783-023-1617-0

Front. Environ. Sci. Eng.

2023, Vol. 17

Issue (2) : 17 https://doi.org/10.1007/s11783-023-1617-0

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Effects of exogenous acylated homoserine lactones on biofilms in biofilters for gaseous toluene treatment

Zhuqiu Sun¹, Bairen Yang²(

), Marvin Yeung¹, Jinying Xi¹(

)

¹. Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control State Key Joint Laboratory, School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
². School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Yancheng Institute of Technology, Yancheng 224051, China

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Abstract

● Biofilm formation was enhanced by exogenous AHLs.

● EPS production and microbial adhesive strength of biofilm were promoted.

● Exogenous AHLs improved the performance of biofilters treating toluene.

Biofilters are typical biofilm reactors, and they usually have poor biofilm formation resulting in limited reactor performance. Exogenous acylated homoserine lactones (AHLs) can enhance biofilm formation in many bioreactors based on quorum sensing regulation. However, their effect on biofilm in biofilters utilized for volatile organic compound (VOC) removal is unknown and needs to be investigated. In this study, the effects of the exogenous AHLs on biofilters for gaseous toluene removal were investigated. Analysis of biofilms in biofilters showed that the addition of exogenous AHLs considerably enhanced biofilm growth; the average biofilm concentration increased by 18%. Furthermore, the average biofilm coverage proportions in biofilters with and without exogenous AHLs were 17 % and 13 %, respectively, demonstrating the positive effect of exogenous AHLs on biofilm coverage. In particular, exogenous AHLs promoted the production of extracellular polymeric substances and the microbial adhesive strength of the biofilm. In addition, the exogenous AHLs showed no significant effect on the gaseous toluene removal efficiency of the biofilter. These results show that exogenous AHLs can enhance biofilm formation and can guide the application of exogenous AHLs in VOC biofilters.

Keywords Quorum sensing AHLs Biofilter Biofilm formation

Corresponding Author(s): Bairen Yang,Jinying Xi

About author:

Tongcan Cui and Yizhe Hou contributed equally to this work.

Issue Date: 26 August 2022

Cite this article:

Zhuqiu Sun,Bairen Yang,Marvin Yeung, et al. Effects of exogenous acylated homoserine lactones on biofilms in biofilters for gaseous toluene treatment[J]. Front. Environ. Sci. Eng., 2023, 17(2): 17.

URL:

https://academic.hep.com.cn/fese/EN/10.1007/s11783-023-1617-0
https://academic.hep.com.cn/fese/EN/Y2023/V17/I2/17

Fig.1 Schematic diagram of the biofilters system.

Tab.1 Operational conditions in biofilters

Fig.2 β-galactosidase activity of Agrobacterium tumefaciens A136 for the AHLs level in leachate.

Fig.3 Microbial growth (a) and coverage proportion (b) of biofilms on surface of packing material in the two biofilters.

Fig.4 EPS of biofilms in the two biofilters.

Fig.5 Detachment efficiency of biofilm at day 14 (a) and day 37 (b) under ultrasonic treatment.

Fig.6 LSCM Images of biofilms in the biofilters.

Fig.7 Bacterial community of biofilms from the two biofilters. (a) Relative abundance at phylum levels; (b) relative abundance at genus levels; (c) correlation with biofilms characteristics; (d) alpha diversity.

Fig.8 Toluene removal efficiency (a) and pressure drop (b) of the biofilters.

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