STANDARDIZATION OF DIFFERENT METHODS OF MICROBIAL IMMOBILIZATION FOR DYE DECOLOURIZATION

Abstract

The Textile industry in India is the only industry that has generated huge employment for both skilled and unskilled labour. Among the 10,000 dyes
used in the textile industries, about 10% are discharged into the wastes. Two-third of the dye industry is dominated by textile industry and discharge
large volume of chemical dyes into the environment. The immobilization of microorganisms on preferred adsorbents instigates protects cells from
unfavourable agents, microbial metabolism, and preserves their physiological activity. It provides a direct contact between nutrients and the immobilized
cells. Cell immobilization technique encompasses the transportation of the cells from the bulk phase to the surface of support, followed by the adhesion
of cells and successive colonization of the support surface. The cell-support adhesion is governed by both electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions,
which is the key step in controlling the cell immobilization on the support. A Bacillus bacterial strain isolated from the sludge collected from the textile
dye effluent at Tirupur, Tamil Nadu. It is characterized and found to decolourize the textile dye colour from water body. The bacterial cells were mass
cultivated and harvested by centrifugation. These cells were immobilized by different methods such as sodium alginate, polyacrylamide, carrageenan,
agar. The immobilized bacterial cells were characterized using optical microscopy. They are uniformly embedded in the gel matrix and were compared
for their decolourization potential of synthetic dye.