Degradation of phenol by a mixed culture of Pseudomonas putida and Cryptococcus elinovii adsorbed on activated carbon

Summary Phenol degradation by a defined mixed culture of Pseudomonas putida P8 and Cryptococcus elinovii H 1, which were immobilized by adsorption on activated carbon, was studied.The immobilized mixed culture was able to degrade phenol up to 17 g/l and degraded it faster than the pure cultures, depending on a complementary metabolism of the two microorganisms.Storage experiments revealed an excellent longterm storage capability of the biocatalyst: activated carbon with adsorbed cells of Pseudomonas putida P8 and Cryptococcus elinovii H1 could be stored up to 12 months without decrease on degradation capacity.Scanning electron micrographs showed that Pseudomonas putida P8 had grown through the pore system of the activated carbon into the inside of the carbon particles.