INTERACTIONS OF MICROBIAL BIOFILMS WITH TOXIC TRACE-METALS .2. PREDICTION AND VERIFICATION OF AN INTEGRATED COMPUTER-MODEL OF LEAD-(II) DISTRIBUTION IN THE PRESENCE OF MICROBIAL ACTIVITY

The interfacial interactions of a toxic trace metal, Pb, with a surface modified by a marine film-forming bacterium, Pseudomonas atlantica, were predicted by a structured biofilm model used in conjunction with a chemical speciation model. The validity of the integrated model was tested for batch and continuous operations. Dynamic responses of the biophase due to transient lead concentration increases were also simulated. The reasonable predictions achieved by the model demonstrate its utility in describing trace metal distributions in complex systems where the adsorption properties of inorganic surfaces are modified by adherent bacteria and bacterial production of extracellular polymers. (C) 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.