Ferrous ion oxidation by Thiobacillus ferrooxidans immobilized on activated carbon

The immobilization of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans on the activated carbon particles as support matrix was investigated. Cycling batch operation results in the complete oxidation of ferrous iron in 8 d when the modified 9 K medium is set to flow through the mini-bioreactor at a rate of 0.104 L/h at 25 °C. The oxidation rate of ferrous iron with immobilized T. ferrooxidans is 9.38 g/(L·h). The results show that the immobilization of T. ferrooxidans on activated carbon can improve the rate of oxidation of ferrous iron. The SEM images show that a build-up of cells of T. ferrooxidans and iron precipitates is formed on the surface of activated carbon particles.