The reduction of coloured compounds using whole bacterial cells (Shewanella strain J18 143)

The delivery of colour, in the form of dyes, onto textile fibres is an inefficient process. As a result, the wastewater produced by the textile industry is coloured. Colour pollution in aquatic environments is an escalating problem, despite substantial research into modifying the dyeing process to increase the level of delivery and uptake of the dyes. The recalcitrant nature of modern synthetic dyes has led to the imposition of strict environmental regulations. A cost-effective process to remove colour from wastewater that is produced by the textile industry is needed (Willmott et al. 1998). The research presented here concerns the use of a patented biocatalyst, isolated from soil contaminated with textile dyes, for the reduction of water-soluble azo dyes that are present in textile dyeing wastewater.