Biodegradation of Reactive Red 198 by textile effluent adapted microbial strains.

A sustainable technology to eliminate the persistent reactive dyes from the textile effluents discharged indiscriminately in the environment is highly desirous given the explosive growth of textile industries. The present study investigated the potential of two different bacterial strains, Bacillus cereus SKB12 and Enterobacter hormaechei SKB16 isolated from the dye house effluent sludge in the biotransformation of Reactive Red 198 (RR 198). Process variables such as temperature, pH, shaking conditions and contact time were optimized for the successful decolourization of RR 198.