Kinetic and multidimensional profiling of accelerated degradation of oil sludge by biostimulation

Abstract

Biostimulation, which employs nutrients to enhance the proliferation of indigenous microorganisms and therefore the degradation of contaminants, is an effective tool for treatment of oil-contaminated soil. However, the evolution of microbial ecology, which responds directly to stimulation procedures and intrinsically determines the degradation of oil contaminants, has rarely been explored, particularly in the context of biostimulation. In this study, the effects of biostimulation procedures including the regulation of the C : N : P ratio, as well as application of surfactants and electron acceptors in the degradation of crude oil contaminants and the evolution of the microbial community were examined simultaneously to provide ecological insights into the biostimulation. The real-time PCR showed that biostimulation promoted the proliferation of bacteria, with Gammaproteobacteria showing the greatest increase. However, the proliferation of fungi was inhibited by the accumulation of the degradation products. The degradation of polar compounds of crude oil contaminants was characterized by negative-ion electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (negative-ion ESI FT-ICR MS), showing a biased increase in the relative abundance of naphthenic acids. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that different species in oil sludge have different degradation rates during biostimulation. The addition of fertilizers with surfactants and electron acceptors profoundly stimulated the indigenous microorganisms with N₁, O₁ and O₂ species as substrates while those with O₃ and O₄ species were little affected. An enriched abundance of alkB genes was observed during the degradation of saturated hydrocarbons. Monitoring the kinetics of the microbial community, functional genes and degradation offers a comprehensive view for the understanding and optimization of the biostimulation process.