ABSTRACT
Bioremediation of contaminated aquatic and soil environments has arisen as an effective technology with a range of advantages compared to more traditional methods. Bioremediation of waste materials that contain hydrocarbons and their derivatives is based on the ability of microorganisms to increase their biomass growing on these substrates and degrading them to nontoxic products, such as H2O and CO2 (Leahy and Colwell 1990). Petroleum components have traditionally been divided into four fractions: saturated hydrocarbons, aromatic hydrocarbons, nitrogen-sulphur-oxygen-containing compounds (NSOs) and asphalthenes.
