Gasoline biodegradation in different soil microcosms

The objective of this study was to evaluate gasoline biodegradation in batch soil microcosms. Microorganisms able to grow in the presence of gasoline were isolated from soil. Several treatment systems were performed using both isolated strains and Pseudomonas putida obtained from a culture collection. The treatment system using only autochthonous microflora (system 1) presented an average value of degradation of 50%. The association of Pseudomonas putida, Burkholderia cepacia, Pseudomonas alcaligenes and the native soil microflora (system 13) presented significant percentage of removal of n-undecane (88.7), n-dodecane (61.3) and n-tridecane (66.7). According to these results, systems 1 and 13 revealed considerable potential for application in bioremediation treatments.