Sampling and identification of coal tar resistant fungi found on wooden railway sleepers

Abstract

Coal tar is a mixture of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), heterocyclic compounds and phenols. Coal tar is used as wood preservative against i.e. insecticide and fungicide, It is also used as component of roofing pitch and fuel oil. Coal tar contains more than a dozen toxic PAH that have been known as human carcinogens. Types of cancer that may be caused by coal tar used include: blood, liver, lung, skin, kidney and stomach cancers. Such waste disposal options, as burning and land filling of the treated wood waste are inappropriate nowadays due to environmental, health and economical reasons. The aim of this research is to determine the efficiency of fungi samples, found on the wood sleepers and close to the railways, in the bioremediation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). Fungi Pleurotus ostreatus SMR 684, Pleurotus eryngii, Bjerkandera adusta, Irpex lacteus and Schizophyllum commune demonstrate high resistance to different coal tar concentrations. Composition of coal tar in railway wood sleepers can is determined by means of dofferent separation techniques, such as GC-MS, GC-FID, HPLC/UPLC with UV and fluorescence detections.