ABSTRACT
The microbial populations in the activated sludge are versatile in degrading various organic priority pollutants, if adequate time for acclimation adaptation is given. The rate of biodegradation can drastically vary with the extent of adaptation. However, in a new environment, when the favored substrates are not available, the adapted cultures may lose their ability deadaptation to degrade the specific chemicals to which they were adapted. The rate of deadaptation and the length of time needed for deadaptation is an important factor in: predicting the biodegradability of organic pollutants which are discharged intermittently; successful application of bioaugmentation products; and determining the shelf life of such products. The phenomena of microbial adaptation and deadaptation occurring in activated sludge are complex due to the nature of mixed population, variability of pollutants in the influent, and loss of organisms by the intentional wastage of sludge. The removal of phenol and glucose was linear with respect to time and indicates occurrence of zero order kinetics.
