Abstract

Terephthalic acid (TA) is one of the main pollutants in wastewater from the polyester textile industry and extremely harmful to human health and the environment. Eighty-seven isolates were collected from soil around the wastewater basin of a polyester textile manufacturer in Thailand, based on their ability to grow in a minimal salt medium (MSM) containing 1 g/L TA as the sole carbon and energy source. Nineteen isolates were found to be TA-degrading bacteria. To obtain more efficient TA-degrading bacteria, the TA concentration in MSM was increased to 2 and 5 g/L. Isolate N2 showed TA-degrading ability higher than 90% and was identified as <em>Rhodococcus biphenylivorans</em> according to its morphological and biochemical properties and 16S rDNA sequence analysis. N2 degraded 99.6% of 10 g/L TA in 5 days. Optimal conditions for TA degradation were 30 C, pH 7.0 and 200 rpm shaking speed. Results implied that R. biphenylivorans could be useful for future applications in bioremediation of TA in the environment.