Screening of microbial communities in mining water

For the control of biological processes or for the monitoring of industrial processes, knowledge of the microbial metabolic processes is of great importance. Through targeted investigations of the process-determining microbial communities using cultivation-dependent and cultivation-independent methods, G.E.O.S. was able to optimise the process of biological mining water treatment to such an extent that a 90% removal of contamination (heavy metals, sulphate) was achieved.

G.E.O.S. delivered the following services:

• Molecular genetic analysis of the microbial community in mining water and process wastewater from a bioreactor based on 16S rDNA analysis and sequencing using Oxford Nanopore's MinION.
• Enrichment of microbial cultures from mining water (sulphate reducers, iron oxidisers, sulphur oxidisers)
• Recording of growth characteristics to test various cultures of sulphate-reducing bacteria for substrate growth
• Determination of the total bacterial count of the sulphate-reducing bacteria
• Microscopic examination using a phase contrast microscope/fluorescence microscope
• Photometric detection of the metabolic products