Extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) play important roles in regulating the dewaterability of sludge. This study sought to elucidate the influence of EPS on the dewaterability of sludge during bioleaching process. Results showed that, in bioleaching system with the co-inoculation of Acidithiobacillus thiooxidans TS6 and Acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans LX5 (A. t+A. f system), the capillary su...

A novel bioleaching process, preincubation bioleaching (PB) has been recently developed in our laboratory for decontamination of heavy-metal-laden sewage sludge by removing the toxic low molecular weight organic acids using an isolated degradative yeast species. The objective of the present study was to optimize Fe2+ /solids content ratio required for removing heavy metals from sewage sludge by...

Pseudomonas chlororaphis strain L19, isolated from stone coal soil, has the ability to perform bioleaching to release vanadium ions from mineral ore. Here, we report the draft genome sequence and annotation of the vanadium-leaching bacterium Pseudomonas chlororaphis L19. These data provide information for understanding the genomic properties and mineral bioleaching mechanisms of strain L19.

Microbial autotroph-heterotroph interactions influence biogeochemical cycles on a global scale, but the diversity and complexity of natural systems and their intractability to in situ manipulation make it challenging to elucidate the principles governing these interactions. The study of assembling phototrophic biofilm communities provides a robust means to identify such interactions and evaluat...

In the context of a bacterial assisted leaching system, understanding the kinetics of microbial oxidation is essential to explore alternatives for process optimization. On a laboratory scale, there are empirical-analytic models that fit well to the dynamic of bacterial populations. However, at industrial level, the bioleaching process complexity together with the limited understanding of the re...

Most spatial ecology focuses on how species dispersal affects community dynamics and coexistence. Ecosystems, however, are also commonly connected by flows of resources. We experimentally tested how neighbouring communities indirectly influence each other in absence of dispersal, via resource exchanges. Using two-patch microcosm meta-ecosystems, we manipulated community composition and dynamics...

High-throughput genomic technologies are accelerating progress in understanding the diversity of microbial life in many environments. Here we highlight advances in genomics and metagenomics of microorganisms from bioleaching heaps and related acidic mining environments. Bioleaching heaps used for copper recovery provide significant opportunities to study the processes and mechanisms underlying ...

The origin of a rational (scientific) approach to extraction of metal values from ores with the aid of microorganisms (bioleaching) is traced. The removal by microbiological means of ore constituents that interfere with metal extraction (biobeneficiation), an outgrowth from bioleaching, is also traced. © 2004 SDU. All rights reserved.

bioleaching processes for extraction of cu and mo from molybdenite cons. are more environmentally friendly and consume less energy than conventional technologies, yet less economically efficient. one necessary step towards arriving at a cost-effective bioleaching process is using appropriate methodology to optimize pertinent factors in such processes. to this end, the present study employed res...

Although bioleaching was used unknowingly by the ancients to extract metals (principally copper) from ores, the development of modern commercial bioleaching processes is relatively new. It began in the late 1940s, with the discovery of the role of bacteria in the formation of acid mine drainage. From there, research and development activities in the field flourished, and the earliest commercial...