Degradation of immobilized azo dyes by Klebsiella sp. UAP-b5 isolated from maize bioadsorbent

The degradation of two immobilized dyes by Klebsiella sp. UAP-b5 was studied. In batch experiments, the azo dyestuffs Basic Blue 41 and Reactive Black 5 were immobilized onto corn cobs by adsorption, and the adsorption process was characterized by a pseudo-second-order kinetic equation. Klebsiella sp. UAP-b5 was previously isolated from the corn waste and shown to decolorize these dyes in liquid systems. Here, we demonstrate anaerobic decolorization and reductive biodegradation of these dyes by means of spectrophotometry, HPLC, and IR spectroscopy of the solid waste and desorption solutions. We also demonstrate adsorption of compounds that resemble known degradation products.