Year: 1968
Type: article
Abstract: The bacteria obtained from soils enriched with gaseous alkanes have been studied by various workers (1-4).The substrate specificity of these bacteria is of considerable interest as LEADBETTER and FOSTER (5) have shown that Pseudonionas methanica will not grow on ethane, propane and butane but will co-oxidise these alkanes whilst growing on methane.This paper describes the utilization of mixtures of gaseous alkanes by the micro-flora of a wide range of soils.Duplicate top-soil samples were collected from seventeen sites at eleven locations near Adelaide.At three sites sub-soils were also sampled.Within ten days of collection, the soils (Table 1) were assayed for their ability to oxidise gaseous alkanes using the following method.Each sample of soil was sieved and mixed.A sub-sample (20 g) was placed in a bottle (250 ml capacity), covered with 30 ml of mineral salt solution and sealed with a rubber bung fitted with a glass tube stoppered by a SUBASEAL* (6, 7).The bottles were evacuated and filled with a gas mixture containing 0.6% methane, 0.3% ethane and 0.2% propane in air and incubated as sets of shaken and still cultures at 25° for 69 days.After 21 and 45 days' incubation, all bottles were re-evacuated and refilled with the mixture of gaseous substrates.In addition, five soils were incubated as shaken cultures with individual alkanes at concentrations of 0.6% methane, or 0.3% ethane or 0.2% propane in air.Controls contained alkane(s) and mineral salt solution but no soil.At least once each week a 250 pl sample of the atmosphere within each bottle was removed with a hypodermic syringe, via the Subaseal stopper, and injected into a F & M model 609 flame ionization gas chromatograph.The alkanes were separated at room temperature on a column containing 30% (w/w) silicone oil DC 200 supported on Chromasorb P. Alkane concentrations were estimated by measuring peak heights (6, 7).
DOI: 10.2323/jgam.14.447
Authors: P.G. BRISBANE, J.N. LADD
Language: English
Subfield: Pollution
Field: Environmental Science
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W1978188249