Mais  Zwan* ⁽¹⁾ and  Ahmad Kara-Ali⁽²⁾

(1). Department of Marine Biology -High Institute of Marine Research- Tishreen University – Lattakia- Syria.

(2). Department of Marine Chemistry- High Institute of Marine Research – Tishreen University – Latakia- Syria.

(*Corresponding author: Mais  Zwan   E-Mail : maiszwan22@gmail.com ).

Received:   29/3/2024         Accepted:  25/5/2024

Abstract: 

The process of extracting olive oil produces toxic liquid wastes known as (OMW: Olive Mill Wastewater), which causes a serious environmental problem when disposed directly without treatment due to its high content of organic and phenolic substances. The present study aims to reduce the concentrations of phenolic compounds in OMW by cultivation the bacterial strains Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus xylosus isolated from sediment and marine porous waters respectively – from the coastal area of Latakia city – in media containing OMW with different dilutions (25, 50, 100)% at 30 ^oC for 30 days. After the incubation period had elapsed, the media were distilled at 157 ^oC and the extracts were analyzed using a high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) at a maximum absorption wavelength of 275 nm. When B. cereus was used, a decrease in the concentrations of 2,6-dimethyl phenol, salicylic acid, and P-cresol was observed at all dilutions of OMW. It was also observed that the concentration of ferulic acid and Questeen increased, and the disappearance of chlorogenic acid, coumaric acid, and vanillin with their presence in control extracts at all OMW dilutions. When using S. xylosus bacteria, there was a clear decrease in all the phenolic compounds studied, with the absence of chlorogenic acid and coumaric acid in the extracts of fermentation samples compared to their presence in control extracts. The bioremediation used in this study is low cost and has good efficacy in reducing the problem of environmental pollution caused by phenolic compounds in OMW with a clear efficacy of S. xylosus compared to B. cereus.

Keywords: Olive Mill Wastewater, Marine bacteria, Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus xylosus, phenolic compounds, High performance liquid chromatography.

 Full paper in Arabic: PDF