Comparison of decolorization of reactive microorganisms isolated from various sources

Azo dyes are among the oldest man made chemicals and they are still widely used in the textile, printing and the food industries. About 10%-15% of the total dyes used in the industry is released into the environment during the manufacturing and usage. Some dyes and some of their N substituted aromatic bio transformation products are toxic and/or carcinogenic and therefore these dyes are considered to be environmental pollutants and health hazards. These azo dyes are degraded by physico chemical and biological methods. Of these, biological methods are considered to be the most economical and efficient. In this work, attempts were made to degrade these dyes aerobically. The organisms which were efficient in degrading the following azo dyes Red RB, Remazol Red, Remazol Blue, Remazol Violet, Remazol Yellow, Golden Yellow, Remazol Orange, Remazol Black were isolated from three different sources viz., wastewater treatment plant, paper mill effluent treatment plant and tannery wastewater treatment plant. The efficiency of azo dye degradation by mixed cultures from each source was analyzed. It was found that mixed cultures from tannery treatment plant worked efficiently in decolorizing Remazol Red, Remazol Orange, Remazol Blue and Remazol Violet, while mixed cultures from the paper mill effluent worked efficiently in decolorizing Red RB, Golden Yellow and Remazol Yellow. The mixed cultures from wastewater treatment plant efficiently decolorized Remazol Black.