What Are Microbial Materials?
Microbial material is a powdered or liquid substance that contains high levels of certain microorganisms.
Microorganisms are responsible for decomposing organic matter produced by plants through photosynthesis into inorganic matter. By using microbial substrates, we can apply the power of these microorganisms to various fields.
Microbial materials include live microorganisms, carriers for adsorbing microorganisms, and nutrients for activating microorganisms. Since each microorganism specializes in a different field, it is necessary to select the appropriate microbial material for the application.
Uses of Microbial Materials
Microbial materials are used in soil, air, water, and other applications. The following is a detailed explanation of each application.
- Soil
There are two types of soil materials: agricultural materials and materials for remediation of contaminated soil. Agricultural materials are used to promote plant growth and increase the number of useful microbial organisms. Materials for soil remediation are used to clean up contaminated soil at former factory sites. - Atmosphere
Microbial deodorizers and microbial deodorizers are examples of materials for the atmosphere. These are used in food processing plants, waste treatment plants, sewage treatment plants, etc. - Water Quality
Materials for water are used to purify sewage and industrial wastewater contamination. They also play a role in the treatment of wastewater from the kitchens of restaurants and other facilities. - Others
Materials for food waste treatment are also available.
Principle of Microbial Materials
Microbial materials are produced by the following methods:
- Collection and Selection of Microorganisms to Be Used
Various microorganisms are collected, and those that may be useful are selected from among them. - Cultivation of Microorganisms
The selected microorganisms are cultured to increase their numbers and then collected by centrifugation or other means. - Materialization
Collected microorganisms are used as they are as liquid materials, or the microorganisms are adsorbed on carriers to be used as materials. If carriers are used, it is important to select carriers suitable for the growth of the target microorganisms. - Judging the Effectiveness of the Material
We check whether the target microbial material contains the target microorganisms, and verify the effectiveness of the material by actually using it.
Microbial materials present a number of challenges, such as limited conditions of use depending on the microorganisms used (it is necessary to examine the chemical and biological properties of the material before use), the need to consider compatibility with indigenous microorganisms, and the possibility of loss of microbial function in the manufacturing process.
Microbial materials have the great advantage of being environmentally friendly. It is important to grow the market for microbial materials in order to create a sustainable society.