Electrochemical activation of nitrate reduction to nitrogen by Ochrobactrum sp. G3-1 using a noncompartmented electrochemical bioreactor.

A denitrification bacterium was isolated from riverbed soil and identified as Ochrobactrum sp., whose specific enzymes for denitrification metabolism were biochemically assayed or confirmed with specific coding genes. The denitrification activity of strain G3-1 was proportional to glucose/nitrate balance, which was consistent with the theoretical balance (0.5). The modified graphite felt cathode with neutral red, which functions as a solid electron mediator, enhanced the electron transfer from electrode to bacterial cell. The porous carbon anode was coated with a ceramic membrane and cellulose acetate film in order to permit the penetration of water molecules from the catholyte to the outside through anode, which functions as an air anode. A non-compartmented electrochemical bioreactor (NCEB) comprised of a solid electron mediator and an air anode was employed for cultivation of G3-1 cells. The intact G3-1 cells were immobilized in the solid electron mediator, by which denitrification activity was greatly increased at the lower glucose/nitrate balance than the theoretical balance (0.5). Metabolic stability of the intact G3-1 cells immobilized in the solid electron mediator was extended to 20 days, even at a glucose/nitrate balance of 0.1.