The ligninolytic fungus Pleurotus ostreatoroseus (synonymy of Pleurotus ëous) was used to treat the first alkali extraction stage (E1) effluent of a kraft bleach plant. It was pelletized and used for two continuous experiments in a two-liter turbulent-flow bioreactor. In the first experiment, the average removal of color and of total phenols was 18.6 and 11.6%, respectively, after the addition of glucose. During the second experiment, which was developed with the addition of several quantities of glucose, the maximum removal of color, of total phenols and of lignin/chlorolignin was 19.4, 9.4 and 44.5%. For both experiments, the best results were obtained when the effluent was diluted and enriched with glucose. This indicated the need for an extra carbon source for the fungal treatment. Using the mycelial mass in suspension, three experiments were carried out. The best results were obtained with 20% fungus and shaking of the effluent. During the last three days of the experiment the average removal of color, of total phenols and of lignin/chlorolignin was 84.4± 6.1, 82.1± 5.7 and 72.4± 8.9, respectively. The results indicate the potential of Pleurotus ostreatoroseus for use in the treatment of E1 effluent.
kraft effluent; fungal treatment; Pleurotus ëou
