BOD Testing of Petrox® with Mineral Oil

Objective: To demonstrate the ability of Petrox® cultures to degrade mineral oil.

Method: A Hach Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) Trak system (Fig. 1) was used to measure oxygen consumption by Petrox cultures in the presence of a single carbons source, mineral oil. The oxygen consumption is proportional to the amount of carbon metabolized by aerobic bacteria and therefore demonstrates the ability of the cultures to degrade the carbon source of interest, in this case mineral oil. Petrox cultures (diluted 1000 fold) were added to sterilized minimal media (96 ml) containing mineral oil as the sole carbon source (0.5 ml) and the oxygen consumption was compared to two negative controls; Petrox cultures in minimal media with no mineral oil and mineral oil in minimal media with no Petrox cultures.

Results: The increasing consumption of oxygen by Petrox cultures in the presence of mineral oil demonstrates the ability of Petrox cultures to degrade mineral oil (Fig. 2). In addition, the turbidity in the Test bottles was visually higher than that of the negative controls indicating growth of the Petrox cultures.

Figure 1 – BOD Trak System

 

Figure 2 – Degradation of Mineral Oil by Petrox Cultures

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