Enzyme Producing Capacity of H-10

Environmental Services

The ORIGINAL Bio Rem Company since 1989

Soil & Water Decontamination Services

ENZYME PRODUCING CAPACITY OF THE H-10™ PRODUCT  AND THE EFFECT OF THE ENZYME ACTION

It has been difficult to explain the action of Bio-Rem’s H-10™ as they penetrate the soil in search of the hydrocarbons so necessary for their survival. It is this need and capacity of soil penetration that makes Bio Rem’s H-10™ ideal for the bioremediation of hydrocarbon contamination. The soil penetration ability is due to the enzymes naturally produced by the activation of the H-10™ product. NOTHING HAS BEEN ADDED TO INCREASE THE EVER PRESENT ENZYME PRODUCING CAPACITY OF THE H-10™ PRODUCT.

On March 1st and 2nd of 1993 a conference was held in Lansing, Michigan by CoBioReM (Cooperative Bioremediation Research for Michigan) .The Michigan Department of Natural Resources and The Michigan Universities Hazardous Waste Management Consortium were among the sponsors of the conference. CoBioReM is a cooperative venture to study the bioremediation of petroleum hydrocarbons in soils and groundwater and the goal of the study is:

“To develop a socially and politically acceptable method to achieve environmentally appropriate and economically viable remediation of soils and groundwater contaminated by hydrocarbon leaks and spills. ”

Mr. John M. Shauver of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) in his address entitled “Cooperative Bioremediation Research for Michigan CoBioReM–The Regulator’s Perspective” spoke of the skepticism of the Michigan regulatory community regarding bioremediation. He indicated that “This skepticism was based on years of misrepresentation and misapplication of bioremediation technology.” Mr. Shauver went on to say that he thought that, because of the CoBioReM project, “the regulator was in a win/win situation”. This was due to CoBioReM’s desire “to determine what soil bacteria could do”.

Another one of the presenters was Mr. Jerome J. Kukor of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI. In his report, “Fundamentals of the Bacterial Cell with Reference to Bioremediation of Petroleum Hydrocarbons” explains the action of the enzymes during the bioremediation process.

The following excerpt from Mr. Kukor’s presentation should be helpful to you:

MICROBIAL PHYSIOLOGY

Nutritional requirements

Bacteria can be classified into four major physiological groups, based on the types of materials used as carbon and energy sources: (1) chemoorganotrophs that use reduced organic compounds as their source of energy and carbon; (2) chemolithotrophs that use a chemical energy source and carbon dioxide as the principle carbon source, and that obtain energy from the oxidation of reduced inorganic compounds; (3) photoorganotrophs that use light as the energy source and an organic compound as the principal carbon source; and (4) photolithotrophs that use light as the energy source and carbon dioxide as the principal carbon source. Most bacteria, including those that degrade petroleum hydrocarbons, are chemoorganotrophs.

In common with all forms of life, bacteria require water, a source of carbon and energy, respiratory electron acceptors (for those strains that engage in energy transudation via respiration), and macronutrients such as phosphorus (in the form of phosphate) and sulfur (in the form of sulfate) . Potassium is the primary cation in bacterial cells. It is involved in maintenance of the correct internal osmotic pressure. The principal form of inorganic nitrogen for assimilation is ammonium. Magnesium, calcium, and iron are significant cellular components, primarily as cofactors for essential enzymes. Manganese, molybdenum, cobalt, copper, and zinc are found in small quantities, bound to a few enzymes. Unlike humans and other animals, bacteria do not require complex dietary factors. Bacteria can synthesize all of their complex macromolecular components from simple precursors.

Anabolism, catabolism, and energy transudation

Inside each bacterial cell, about 10,000 different chemical reactions take place in order for the cell to grow and function. All of these transformations and reactions are dependent on enzymes. The suite of enzymes synthesized by a bacterial cell determines, among other things, whether a complex carbon and energy source can be utilized by a particular strain as a growth substrate. Enzymes are biological catalysts that lower the activation energy required for a chemicalreaction to occur. They increase the rate of reaction, and they are not consumed in the reaction. Enzymes are large protein molecules, which fold with a particular tertiary and quaternary structure to yield an active site where substrate binds. Substrate is defined as the compound on which an enzyme exerts its catalytic effect. Some enzymes need an extra non-protein part essential for their functioning, called a cofactor or a coenzyme.

As you can see enzymes are responsible for the speed of migration of the bacteria and thus resemble surface tension depressants and penetrates, but are only natural occurring phenomenon which in this case assists the bacteria to their feast.

We thank you for your time as we have attempted to explain the part that enzymes play in the bioremediation process.