Biodegradability sewage sludge

The methacrylates ate slightly to essentially nontoxic to fish and other aquatic species. Hydrolysis data suggest rapid breakdown at alkaline conditions, and studies show that MMA is ultimately biodegradable ia sewage sludge samples. Based on this information, the methacrylates ate not considered to be a significant environmental hazard. 

Linear alkylbenzenesulfonate showed no deleterious effect on agricultural crops exposed to this material (54,55). Kinetics of biodegradation have been studied in both wastewater treatment systems and natural degradation systems (48,57,58). Studies have concluded that linear alkylbenzenesulfonate does not pose a risk to the environment (50). Linear alkylbenzenesulfonate has a half-life of approximately one day in sewage sludge and natural water sources and a half-life of one to three weeks in soils. Aquatic environmental safety assessment has also shown that the material does not pose a hazard to the aquatic environment (56). 

Fig. 1. Biodegradation of poly(HASCL). The bottles consist of the Biopol material and were in cubated in aerobic sewage sludge for 0,2,4,6, and 8 weeks, respectively (left to right)...

Cheng HF, Chen SY, Lin JG (2000) Biodegradation of di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate in sewage sludge. Water Sci Technol 41 1-6... 

Keywords Biodegradation, Emerging pollutants, Sewage sludge, Trametes versicolor, White-rot fungi... 

Baird et al. [40] utilized gas chromatography in his study of the biodegradability of chlorinated phenols in sewage sludge. 

Andrade PS Jr, Wheeler WB. 1974. Biodegradation of mirex by sewage sludge organisms. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 11 (5) 415-416. 

U. Neis, K. Nickel, and A. Tiehm, Ultrasonic disintegration of sewage sludge for enhanced anaerobic biodegradation. Advances in Sonochemistry, 6, Theme issue — Ultrasound in Environmental Protection,... 

Aerobic degradation of diethyl phthalate by acclimated soil and activated sewage sludge microbes was studied using an acclimated shake flask CO2 evolution test. After 28 d, loss of diethyl phthalate (primary degradation) was >99%, with a lag phase of 2.3 d, and ultimate biodegradation (CO2 evolution) was 95%. The half-life was 2.21 d (Sugatt et al., 1984). 

Biological. A mixed culture of soil bacteria or a Pseudomonas sp. transformed 1,2,4,5-tetrachlorobenzene to 2,3,5,6-tetrachlorophenol (Ballschiter and Scholz, 1980). After incubation in sewage sludge for 32 d under anaerobic conditions, 1,2,4,5-tetrachlorobenzene did not biodegrade (Kirk et al., 1989). 

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