ABSTRACT
Methanol is a volatile organic compound, toxic and flammable, naturally produced during the decaying process of organic matter. During the aerobic utilization, methanol is mineralized to carbon dioxide and water by aerobic methylotrophic families, such as Pseudomonas, Methylomonas, Protaminobacter, and Arthrobacter. Biofilters are used to remove odorous pollutants from sewage treatment facilities, composting and other industrial wastewater treatment plants. A biotrickling filter is a fixed bed reactor wherein the pollutants are passed through a microbial consortium immobilized on a suitable support material with high surface area. While most of the studies on methanol mineralization are carried out using synthetic wastewater, few studies have demonstrated the treatment of methanol-rich effluents such as Kraft condensates. Anaerobic oxidation of methane is a natural phenomenon occurring in deep marine environments with methane seepage. Methane-to-methanol conversion is attracting considerable attention owing to the abundant reserves of methane and the potential for methane utilization as an alternative chemical feedstock for the production of value-added chemicals.
