Biodegradation of high di-(2-Ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) concentration by food waste composting and its toxicity assessment using seed germination test

Tran HT 1 , Lin C 2 , Lam SS 3 , Le TH 4 , Hoang HG 5 , Bui XT 6 Show all authors , Rene ER 7 , Chen PH 4

Affiliations 

  • 1 Laboratory of Ecology and Environmental Management, Science and Technology Advanced Institute, Van Lang University, Ho Chi Minh City, 700000, Viet Nam; Faculty of Applied Technology, School of Engineering and Technology, Van Lang University, Ho Chi Minh City, 700000, Viet Nam
  • 2 Department of Marine Environmental Engineering, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung, 81157, Taiwan. Electronic address: ctlin@nkust.edu.tw
  • 3 Higher Institution Centre of Excellence (HICoE), Institute of Tropical Aquaculture and Fisheries (AKUATROP), Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia; Henan Province Engineering Research Center for Biomass Value-added Products, School of Forestry, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, 450002, China
  • 4 Department of Marine Environmental Engineering, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung, 81157, Taiwan
  • 5 Faculty of Medicine, Dong Nai Technology University, Bien Hoa, Dong Nai, 76100, Vietnam
  • 6 Key Laboratory of Advanced Waste Treatment Technology, Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology (HCMUT), Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh (VNU-HCM), Linh Trung Ward, Thu Duc City, Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam; Faculty of Environment and Natural Resources, Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology (HCMUT), Ho Chi Minh City 700000, Vietnam
  • 7 Department of Water Supply, Sanitation and Environmental Engineering, IHE Delft Institute for Water Education, Westvest 7, P. O. Box 3015, 2601DA, Delft, the Netherlands
Environ Pollut, 2023 Jan 01;316(Pt 2):120640.
PMID: 36403881 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2022.120640

Abstract

Di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), a plasticizer derived from phthalate ester, is used as an additive in industrial products such as plastics, paints, and medical devices. However, DEHP is known as an endocrine-disrupting chemical, causing cancers and adverse effects on human health. This study evaluated DEHP biodegradation efficiency via food waste composting during 35 days of incubation. At high DEHP concentrations (2167 mg kg-1) in food waste compost mixture, the DEHP biodegradation efficiency was 99% after 35 days. The highest degradation efficiency was recorded at the thermophilic phase (day 3 - day 11) with the biodegradation rate reached 187 mg kg-1 day-1. DEHP was metabolized to dibutyl phthalate (DBP) and dimethyl phthalate (DMP) and would be oxidized to benzyl alcohol (BA) and mineralized into CO2 and water via various metabolisms. Finally, the compost's quality with residual DEHP was evaluated using Brassica chinensis L. seeds via 96 h of germination tests. The compost (at day 35) with a trace amount of DEHP as the end product showed no significant effect on the germination rate of Brassica chinensis L. seeds (88%) compared to that without DEHP (94%), indicating that the compost can be reused as fertilizer in agricultural applications. These results provide an improved understanding of the DEHP biodegradation via food waste composting without bioaugmentation and hence facilitating its green remediation and conversion into value-added products. Nevertheless, further studies are needed on DEHP biodegradation in large-scale food waste composting or industrial applications.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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