Isolation of a naphthalene-degrading strain from activated sludge and bioaugmentation with it in a MBR treating coal gasification wastewater.

A highly effective naphthalene-degrading bacterial strain was isolated from acclimated activated sludge from a coal gasification wastewater plant, and identified as a Streptomyces sp., designated as strain QWE-35. The optimal pH and temperature for naphthalene degradation were 7.0 and 35°C. The presence of additional glucose and methanol significantly increased the degradation efficiency of naphthalene. The strain showed tolerance to the toxicity of naphthalene at a concentration as great as 200 mg/L. The Andrews mode could be fitted to the degradation kinetics data well over a wide range of initial naphthalene concentrations (10-200 mg/L), with kinetic values q max = 0.84 h(-1), K s = 40.39 mg/L, and K i = 193.76 mg/L. Metabolic intermediates were identified by gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, allowing a new degradation pathway for naphthalene to be proposed for the first time. Strain QWE-35 was added into a membrane bioreactor (MBR) to enhance the treatment of real coal gasification wastewater. The results showed that the removal of chemical oxygen demand and total nitrogen were similar between bioaugmented and non-bioaugmented MBRs, however, significant removal of naphthalene was obtained in the bioaugmented reactor. The findings suggest a potential bioremediation role of Streptomyces sp. QWE-35 in the removal of naphthalene from wastewaters.