Rhodococcus erythropolis strain NTU-1 efficiently degrades and traps diesel and crude oil in batch and fed-batch bioreactors

Rhodococcus erythropolis strain NTU-1 degraded C10–C32 n-alkanes in diesel oil or crude oil. While degrading these n-alkanes, NTU-1 also trapped most other oil constitutes that were not degraded in biofloccules. In batch cultures with 10,000 ppmv diesel or crude oil, approximately 90% oil removal was achieved within 4 days (about 30% of biodegradation and 60% of biosorption). In bioreactors with aeration and pH adjustment, an intermittent feed of 42,000 ppmv n-hexadecane resulted in approximately 87% removal within 4 weeks (24% of biodegradation and 63% of biosorption), and an intermittent feed of 35,000 ppmv diesel or crude oil resulted in more than 90% removal within 2 weeks (about 20% of biodegradation and 74% of biosorption). The results demonstrate the feasibility for the application of R. erythropolis strain NTU-1 to the bioremediation of sites polluted with petroleum spills.