Activated Charcoal Mediated Microbial Degradation of Diclofenac Using Bacterial Pure Cultures.

Diclofenac is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, commonly detected in natural aquatic environments around the world. This persistent bio-refractory emerging contaminant often occurs in concentrations of ecological significance leading to several physiological implications in living organisms. In this study, diclofenac was degraded by bacterial pure cultures isolated from soil, following which the degradation efficiency was enhanced using activated charcoal. Four bacterial strains were isolated and studied for degradation of 10 mg/L of diclofenac in the presence of acetate for 6 days. The contaminant removal was evaluated using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). Diclofenac degradation occurred through co-metabolism with acetate acting as a supplementary carbon source. This degradation was further augmented using 1g/L commercial activated charcoal, which increases the removal efficiency through adsorption. A control consisting of only activated charcoal was also kept to check removal through adsorption without involving bacterial degradation. The control containing activated charcoal showed a removal efficiency of 71.36% through adsorption, whereas bacterial strains A, B, C, and D exhibited removal efficiencies of 86.73%, 80.83%, 77.77%, and 86.06% respectively. On combining activated charcoal with bacterial isolates, these removal efficiencies were considerably improved to 92.34%, 86.38%, 82.6%, and 93.31% respectively. This study will extend the understanding regarding the combination of two different removal methods pertaining to conventional physicochemical and biological treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]