Development and research of adaptive microbial consortium for biological wastewater treatment from betaine surfactants

In order to carry out the biodegradation of toxic organic components of wastewater, the selection of the strains of microorganisms which will have high biodestructive capacity in relation to toxic components is relevant. The purpose of this work is to analyze the effectiveness of the process of biodegradation of cocamidopropyl betaine by a bacterial consortium consisting of four degradation strains of the genus Pseudomonas, under conditions of a multi-component system. Wastewater from dairy processing plants containing surfactants was selected as test solutions. Quantitative changes in the composition of the solutions were recorded using physicochemical analysis methods. On the third day of the experiment, the microbial consortium performed the primary biodegradation of surfactant in the amount of 65.3 % of the initial concentration values. On the fifth day, the surfactant content reached the maximum permissible values. Activated sludge showed a longer adaptation period and by the third day used 48 % surfactant as a nutrient substrate. The main indicators determining the quality of treated effluents comply with the established standards SanPiN 2.1.3684-21. The presence in the system of substances characteristic of wastewater of dairy processing plants does not adversely affect the degree and duration of the biodegradation process of cocamidopropyl betaine. The bacterial consortium in the conditions of a multicomponent system works more efficiently than bacterial strains separately under conditions of a pure surfactant solution.