Biological removal of pyritic sulfur from coal by the thermophilic organism Sulfolobus acidocaldarius

✍ Scribed by Fikret Kargi; James M. Robinson

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1985
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 898 KB
• Volume: 27
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0006-3592
• DOI: 10.1002/bit.260270107

✦ Synopsis

More than 90% of initial pyritic sulfur was removed from bituminous coal samples (containing 2.1 O/ O pyritic sulfur) using the thermophilic organism Sulfolobus acido- caldarius. Microbial desulfurization rate was improved nearly ten fold by adjusting the NIP and NlMg ratios in the nutrient medium. Environmental conditions were optimized. The optimal values of temperature and pH were 7OoC and 1.5, respectively. The influence of certain process variables (such as coal pulp density, particle size, and initial cell number density)on the rateof pyriticsulfur removaLwere determined. A pulp density of 20%, particle size of D, <48 pm, and an initial cell number density of 10l2 cellslg pyrite in coal were found to be optimal. The carbon dioxide enriched air did not improve the rate of pyritic sulfur removal compared to pure air at 10% pulp density of coal samples containing 2.1 O/ O pyritic sulfur. The kinetics of microbial leaching of pyritic sulfur from coal was investigated. The rate of leaching was found to be first order with respect to pyritic sulfur concentration in the reaction medium.