Modelling of ferrous sulphate oxidation by Thiobacillus ferrooxidans in discontinuous culture: Influence of temperature, pH and agitation rate

Abstract

This paper studies the temperature effect on the specific growth rate of the microorganisms (μ_c) as particular aspect of the mathematical relationships between μ_c of Thiobacillus ferrooxidans and the concentrations of substrate (ferrous iron) and product (ferric iron). Until now, there have been few studies of this relationship; also, there has been little work studying the influence of temperature on growth kinetics of this bacteria. In this paper, an extensive experimental phase has been developed, with the aim of determining with precision the influence of temperature on the maximum specific growth rate (μ_max). The influence on the growth rate of T. ferrooxidans exerted by the initial pH of the medium and by agitation rate has also been studied.