RESUMO
This study was aimed at assess the potential of diazotrophic bacteria, Herbaspirillum sp. GW103, for bioleaching of Cu in mine soil. The strain exhibited resistance to As (550mgL(-1)), Cu (350mgL(-1)), Zn (300mgL(-1)) and Pb (200mgL(-1)). The copper resistance was further confirmed by locating copA and copB genes. The survival of the isolate GW103 during bioleaching was analyzed using green fluorescent protein tagged GW103. Response surface methodology based Box-Behnken design was used to optimize the physical and chemical conditions for Cu bioleaching. Five significant variables (temperature, incubation time, CaCO3, coconut oil cake (COC), agitation rate) were selected for the optimization. Second-order polynomials were established to identify the relationship between Cu bioleaching and variables. The optimal conditions for maximum Cu bioleaching (66%) were 30°C, 60h of incubation with 1.75% of CaCO3 and 3% COC at 140rpm. The results of Cu sequential extraction studies indicated that the isolate GW103 leached Cu from ion-exchangeable, reducible, strong organic and residual fractions. Obtained results point out that the isolate GW103 could be used for bioleaching of Cu from mine soils.