scholarly journals Bioaugmentation With a Consortium of Bacterial Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulfate-Degraders for Remediation of Contaminated Soils

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ludovica Rolando ◽  
Anna Barra Caracciolo ◽  
Paola Grenni ◽  
Livia Mariani ◽  
Jasmin Rauseo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Contaminated Soils ◽  
Earth Pressure ◽  
Bacterial Consortium ◽  
Pressure Balance ◽  
Soil Extracts ◽  
Foaming Agents ◽  
Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulfate ◽  
Ether Sulfate ◽  
Lauryl Ether ◽  
Boring Machines

The anionic surfactant sodium lauryl ether sulfate (SLES) is the main component of most commercial foaming agents (FAs) used in the excavation of highway and railway tunnels with Earth pressure balance-tunnel boring machines (EPB-TBMs). Several hundreds of millions of tons of spoil material, consisting of soil mixed with FAs, are produced worldwide, raising the issue of their handling and safe disposal. Reducing waste production and reusing by-products are the primary objectives of the “circular economy,” and in this context, the biodegradation of SLES becomes a key question in reclaiming excavated soils, especially at construction sites where SLES degradation on the spot is not possible because of lack of space for temporary spoil material storage. The aim of the present work was to apply a bacterial consortium (BC) of SLES degraders to spoil material excavated with an EPB-TBM and coming from a real construction site. For this purpose, the BC capability to accelerate SLES degradation was tested. Preliminary BC growth, degradation tests, and ecotoxicological evaluations were performed on a selected FA. Subsequently, a bioaugmentation experiment was conducted; and the microbial abundance, viability, and SLES concentrations in spoil material were evaluated over the experimental time (0.5, 3, 6, 24, 48, and 144 h). Moreover, the corresponding aqueous elutriates were extracted from all the soil samples and analyzed for SLES concentration and ecotoxicological evaluations with the bacterium Aliivibrio fischeri. The preliminary experiments showed the BC capability to grow under 14 different concentrations of the FA. The maximum BC growth rates and degradation efficiency (100%) were achieved with initial SLES concentrations of 125, 250, and 500 mg/L. The subsequent bioaugmentation of the spoil material with BC significantly (sixfold) improved the degradation time of SLES (DT50 1 day) compared with natural attenuation (DT50 6 days). In line with this result, neither SLES residues nor toxicity was recorded in the soil extracts showing the spoil material as a by-product promptly usable. The bioaugmentation with BC can be a very useful for cleaning spoil material produced in underground construction where its temporary storage (for SLES natural biodegradation) is not possible.

scholarly journals Germination, root elongation, and photosynthetic performance of plants exposed to sodium lauryl ether sulfate (SLES): an emerging contaminant

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabetta Salvatori ◽  
Jasmin Rauseo ◽  
Luisa Patrolecco ◽  
Anna Barra Caracciolo ◽  
Francesca Spataro ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Root Elongation ◽  
Photosynthetic Performance ◽  
Emerging Contaminant ◽  
Terrestrial Plants ◽  
Foaming Agents ◽  
Soil Microbial ◽  
Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulfate ◽  
Ether Sulfate ◽  
Lauryl Ether ◽  
Main Component

AbstractThe anionic surfactant SLES (sodium lauryl ether sulfate) is an emerging contaminant, being the main component of foaming agents that are increasingly used by the tunnel construction industry. To fill the gap of knowledge about the potential SLES toxicity on plants, acute and chronic effects were assessed under controlled conditions. The acute ecotoxicological test was performed on Lepidum sativum L. (cress) and Zea mays L. (maize). Germination of both species was not affected by SLES in soil, even at concentrations (1200 mg kg−1) more than twice higher than the maximum realistic values found in contaminated debris, thus confirming the low acute SLES toxicity on terrestrial plants. The root elongation of the more sensitive species (cress) was instead reduced at the highest SLES concentration. In the chronic phytotoxicity experiment, photosynthesis of maize was downregulated, and the photosynthetic performance (PITOT) significantly reduced already under realistic exposures (360 mg kg−1), owing to the SLES ability to interfere with water and/or nutrients uptake by roots. However, such reduction was transient, likely due to the rapid biodegradation of the surfactant by the soil microbial community. Indeed, SLES amount decreased in soil more than 90% of the initial concentration in only 11 days. A significant reduction of the maximum photosynthetic capacity (Pnmax) was still evident at the end of the experiment, suggesting the persistence of negative SLES effects on plant growth and productivity. Overall results, although confirming the low phytotoxicity and high biodegradability of SLES in natural soils, highlight the importance of considering both acute and nonlethal stress effects to evaluate the environmental compatibility of soil containing SLES residues.

scholarly journals Mesocosm Experiments at a Tunnelling Construction Site for Assessing Re-Use of Spoil Material as a By-Product

Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 161
Author(s):  
Anna Barra Caracciolo ◽  
Paola Grenni ◽  
Livia Mariani ◽  
Jasmin Rauseo ◽  
Martina Di Lenola ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Extract ◽  
Earth Pressure ◽  
Construction Site ◽  
Pressure Balance ◽  
Foaming Agents ◽  
Main Compound ◽  
Final Destination ◽  
Soil Mesocosms ◽  
Earth Pressure Balance ◽  
Boring Machines

Mechanized excavation of tunnels with Earth Pressure Balance-Tunnel Boring Machines requires the use of foaming agents. The latter contain the anionic surfactant sodium lauryl ether sulphate (SLES) as the main compound. The re-use as a by-product of excavated soil containing foaming agents (spoil material) can pose a risk for soil and particularly for aquatic ecosystems if they are close to the spoil material final destination site. This work reports the chemical results (SLES residual concentrations) and ecotoxicological effects (battery of five tests) of 28 day-mesocosm studies performed at a tunnelling construction site. The soil mesocosms were set up with two different lithologies, which contained four different foaming agent products at the highest amounts used for excavation. The decrease in SLES concentrations and the ecotoxicological tests were performed in soil and its water extract (elutriate) at different times (0, 7, 14, 28 d). Elutriates were prepared in order to simulate a possible SLES leaching from soil to water. The results showed a decrease in SLES over time and different ecotoxicological responses depending not only on the initial amount of each product, but also on the soil lithology and organism tested (aquatic or terrestrial). This study showed how only site-specific ecotoxicological evaluations can ensure a safe management of the spoil material, making possible the re-use of soil and avoiding production of waste.

scholarly journals Partitioning of Selected Anisole and Veratrole Derivatives between Water and Anionic Surfactant Micelles

Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (24) ◽  
pp. 5818
Author(s):  
Andrzej Lewandowski ◽  
Katarzyna Szymczyk
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Structures ◽  
Head Group ◽  
Lauryl Sulfate ◽  
Micellar Solubilization ◽  
Surfactant Micelles ◽  
Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulfate ◽  
Ether Sulfate ◽  
Water Partition Coefficient ◽  
Lauryl Ether ◽  
Derivatives Of

The UV absorption spectra of six structurally related derivatives of anisole and veratrole, i.e., anisaldehyde, (E)-anethole, estragole, veratraldehyde, methyleugenol and (E)-methylisoeugenol, were recorded at various concentrations of the anionic surfactants, either sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS) or sodium lauryl ether sulfate (SLES) at T = 298 K. In addition, conductivity and density measurements were made for the SLS and SLES solutions to determine the volumetric properties of the studied surfactants. Next, using the W. Al-Soufi, L. Pińeiro and M. Novo model (APN model) including the pseudo-phase model for micellar solubilization, the values of micelle-water partition coefficients for each perfume-surfactant system were determined. In addition, the relations between the molecular structures of the solute and the head group of the surfactant and the value of the micelle-water partition coefficient as well as the octanol-water one were discussed.

Environmental and energetic effects of cleaner production scenarios on the Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulfate production chain

2019 ◽  
Vol 240 ◽  
pp. 118203
Author(s):  
Alex R. Nogueira ◽  
Maria da Graça C.B. Popi ◽  
Claudia Cristina Sanchez Moore ◽  
Luiz Kulay
Keyword(s):  
Cleaner Production ◽  
Production Chain ◽  
Sulfate Production ◽  
Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulfate ◽  
Ether Sulfate ◽  
Lauryl Ether

scholarly journals Near infrared absorption spectroscopy for the quantification of unsulfated alcohol in sodium lauryl ether sulfate

2020 ◽  
pp. 096703352096382
Author(s):  
SE Cunliffe ◽  
PA Martin ◽  
MR Baker ◽  
O Mihailova ◽  
PJ Martin
Keyword(s):  
Gas Chromatography ◽  
Least Squares ◽  
Partial Least Squares ◽  
Absorption Spectroscopy ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
External Validation ◽  
Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulfate ◽  
Ether Sulfate ◽  
Lauryl Ether ◽  
Nir Absorption

Compositional variations in the surfactants used to produce personal care products result in significant challenges during large scale manufacturing, for example errors in product viscosity. Characterisation of the surfactant can be completed using chromatographic techniques however these are time consuming and impractical during real-time manufacturing. Near infrared (NIR) absorption spectroscopy with a fibre-optic coupled transmission probe is proposed as an in-line method of determining the levels of unsulfated alcohol in sodium lauryl ether sulfate (SLES). NIR absorption spectra in the region of 4000 – 12000 cm−1 were collected for a range of supplier samples at three temperatures. Gas chromatography - mass spectrometry was used as a reference technique to quantify samples of SLES and quantitative chemometric data analysis was used to produce partial least squares (PLS) calibration models for the prediction of surfactant composition. PLS regression was performed on the data in the spectral regions between 7509 – 5334 cm−1 using a range of data pre-processing techniques to identify the best model. Models were evaluated using root mean square error of cross validation (RMSECV) and residual predictive deviation (RPD) as the primary indicator of model accuracy and robustness. A partial least squares regression model using a generalised least squares weighting data pre-processing approach was found to be the most robust in regards to sample non-homogeneity and temperature, producing a model with an RMSECV = 0.094 w/w% and RPD = 4.03. The model successfully predicted the unsulfated alcohol mass percentage in an external validation of unknown samples with alcohol levels within the model limits of 0.7–2.2 w/w%. Spectra acquired at a resolution of 8 cm−1 with 32 scans take just 16 seconds to obtain, proving that NIR spectroscopy can successfully be applied as an alternative analytical method to gas chromatography for the determination of low level impurities in viscous surfactant systems.

scholarly journals Sodium lauryl ether sulfate (SLES) degradation by nitrate-reducing bacteria

2017 ◽  
Vol 101 (12) ◽  
pp. 5163-5173 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana M. S. Paulo ◽  
Rozelin Aydin ◽  
Mauricio R. Dimitrov ◽  
Harm Vreeling ◽  
Ana J. Cavaleiro ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sodium Lauryl Ether Sulfate ◽  
Ether Sulfate ◽  
Lauryl Ether ◽  
Reducing Bacteria ◽  
Nitrate Reducing Bacteria
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