Oil pollution remediation has always been a difficult problem for many countries, especially coastal nations, due to high costs, lengthy processes, and environmental impacts. Therefore, the solution of using microorganisms to create biofilms to treat oil pollution incidents in the natural environment plays an important role.
Oil pollution is defined as the release of liquid petroleum hydrocarbons into the environment. This oil can originate from extraction, transportation, or the use of vehicles.
The greater the amount of hydrocarbons released into the environment, the more serious the negative impacts on treatment, ecosystems, and human health.
Therefore, if oil pollution is not treated promptly, it will "annihilate" all living organisms in the ecosystem at the polluted site. Not to mention, the consequences of this pollution process are long-lasting and difficult to remedy for the environment.
The negative impacts demonstrate that oil spills are truly a disaster for the environment. Incident response plans and scenarios are mandatory requirements for extraction facilities, transportation vehicles, and specialized and local management agencies where oil spills may occur.
Currently, there are three main methods for treating oil pollution worldwide: physical, chemical, and biological. Each method has its own advantages and limitations, but the biological method is considered the most effective.
To use this method, biological preparations are used to stimulate the growth and development of microorganisms capable of breaking down oil and absorbing hydrocarbons in the oil.
However, biological methods also have limitations, such as a lengthy process, while some types of microorganisms from the laboratory may have difficulty surviving in a natural environment. In addition, other undesirable problems may occur.
There are two commonly used biological methods for treating oil pollution. One is biostimulation, which involves adding biological preparations; these components stimulate the microorganisms present in the water to break down the oil. The advantages are low cost and environmental safety.
The second method involves directly adding microorganisms (bioaugmentation) to the oil-contaminated area. However, this method is quite complex, expensive, and has a low success rate.
According to Associate Professor, Dr. Le Thi Nhi Cong, Vietnam Academy of Science , scientists at the Institute of Biology ( thuộc the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology) have successfully researched and tested a method of applying microorganisms to create biofilms to treat oil pollution incidents. The product has been granted a patent for a useful solution, number 1942, by the Intellectual Property Office.
The essence of this method lies in the combination of four strains of bacteria native to Vietnam. The operating principle is to combine them to create a barrier, isolating the contaminated area, and then separating and breaking down the components in the oil.
Tests conducted at the Do Xa fuel depot (Hanoi) and the Van Phong Bay area (Khanh Hoa) showed that this product can contain pollution and remove 95% of hydrocarbons in oil-contaminated wastewater in just about 14 days; half the time compared to using other biological methods.
Furthermore, the cost of using the product is only 70% compared to similar products; storage, transportation, and use are also simple and environmentally friendly.
These advantages are of great significance and value in pollution control, especially for countries frequently involved in oil extraction and transportation activities.
Research on microbial membranes for oil pollution treatment has resulted in technology transfer to an exclusive unit for market development. This is also one of many products successfully tested by the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, demonstrating its capabilities and important role in scientific and technological research and application.