Abstract
In order to investigate the biodegradation of anionic surfactants in soil, soil perfusion method has been applied.
The course of biodegradation was followed by the measurements of loss of carbon (total organic carbon) and feloin reagent active substances (FRAS).
In the case of linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LAS), the initial reduction of LAS by adsorption on soils was followed by the successive reduction due to the primary biodegradation, but ultimate biodegradation was not observed.
In the case of dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and branched alkylbenzene sulfonate (ABS), results obtained by TOC showed good agreement with the feloin reagent method. SDS was easily biodegraded into inorganic substances in the early stage of perfusion, whereas ABS was adsorbed on soils, and not degraded during this experimental period.
Assimilating ability of isolated strains from perfused soils by SDS or LAS solution were also studied.
