The feasibility of phytoremediation of groundwater contamination with methyl-tert-butyl ether (MTBE) was examined experimentally using a six-channel soil system with or without plants. Two bacterial strains capable of degrading MTBE were each added to two out of six channels. A solution of 0.84 mM MTBE was continuously fed into each channel at 1 L/day until a stable MTBE concentration level in ...

A bacterial strain, PM1, which is able to utilize methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) as its sole carbon and energy source, was isolated from a mixed microbial consortium in a compost biofilter capable of degrading MTBE. Initial linear rates of MTBE degradation by 2 x 10(6) cells ml(-1) were 0.07, 1.17, and 3.56 microg ml(-1) h(-1) for initial concentrations of 5, 50, and 500 microg MTBE ml(-1), res...

Methyl tert-butyl alcohol (MTBE) is a gasoline additive that is also a common groundwater contaminant because of its high water solubility and the tendency of underground storage tanks to leak. Benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes (BTEX) are gasoline components that commonly co-occur with MTBE at the source of a spill. Biodegradation is an attractive treatment option for MTBE, however, tw...

Methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) is added to gasoline to reduce carbon monoxide and ozone precursors from automobile emissions. The objectives of this study were to verify the ability of a physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) model to predict MTBE blood levels in humans and to investigate the effect of variability in the metabolism of MTBE and its influence on the predicted MTBE blood lev...

There is a discrepancy between in vitro cholesterol dissolving efficacy of methyl-tert-butyl ether (MTBE) and ethyl propionate and cholesterol gall stone dissolution in vivo. This study investigated whether the presence of bile changes the cholesterol dissolving capacity of MTBE and ethyl propionate. The addition of dimethylsulphoxide to MTBE or ethyl propionate was also studied to discover if ...

Methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) is a synthetic chemical that was historically used as an octane booster additive to gasoline. Increasingly there have been concerns about its toxicity and potential carcinogenicity. Because of these concerns, 18 states regulate MTBE levels in groundwater and 17 have banned its use in gasoline. Because of its chemical characteristics, MTBE contaminated sites ar...