Volume 19 Issue 2
May  2026
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Article Navigation >  Water Science and Engineering  > 2026  >  19(2): 269-279
Tong Liu, Lin-lin Ma, Yu-tian Hu, Nan Chen, Chuan-ping Feng. 2026: An integrated microbial—mineral—biomass composite strategy for enhancing the stability and efficiency of Cr(VI) bioreduction under continuous flow. Water Science and Engineering, 19(2): 269-279. doi: 10.1016/j.wse.2026.02.005
Citation: Tong Liu, Lin-lin Ma, Yu-tian Hu, Nan Chen, Chuan-ping Feng. 2026: An integrated microbial—mineral—biomass composite strategy for enhancing the stability and efficiency of Cr(VI) bioreduction under continuous flow. Water Science and Engineering, 19(2): 269-279. doi: 10.1016/j.wse.2026.02.005
shu

An integrated microbial—mineral—biomass composite strategy for enhancing the stability and efficiency of Cr(VI) bioreduction under continuous flow

doi: 10.1016/j.wse.2026.02.005

  • a. State Key Laboratory of Regional and Urban Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China;

  • b. The University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China;

  • c. School of Water Resources and Environment, MOE Key Laboratory of Groundwater Circulation and Environmental Evolution, China University of Geosciences (Beijing), Beijing 100083, China;

  • d. National Engineering Laboratory for Advanced Municipal Wastewater Treatment and Reuse Technology, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing 100124, China;

  • e. National Institute of Low Carbon and Clean Energy, State Key Laboratory of Water Resource Protection and Utilization in Coal Mining, Beijing 102211, China

Funds:

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grants No. 42277041 and 42077163) and the Postdoctoral Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 2022M720316).

  • Received Date: 2025-08-29
    Available Online: 2026-05-30
    Abstract
  • Microbial Cr(VI) reduction represents a cost-effective remediation approach, yet its application in continuous-flow systems is often constrained by toxicity inhibition and nutrient instability. This study developed an integrated microbial—phosphorus mineral—corncob (MPC) composite, which encapsulates Cr(VI)-reducing bacteria with slow-release nutrients within a hydrogel matrix. The MPC system sustained complete Cr(VI) removal at influent concentrations up to 160 mg/L in synthetic wastewater and 120 mg/L in actual groundwater, conditions under which conventional systems typically fail. Reactive transport modeling revealed that diffusion limitations create protective intraparticle concentration gradients, while density functional theory (DFT) calculations confirmed strong Cr(III) sequestration and sustained phosphorus bioavailability. The estimated treatment cost is competitive with existing technologies. These findings demonstrate that engineering a protected self-sufficient microbial microenvironment can overcome critical stability limitations in Cr(VI) bioremediation.

     

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