Oil Zapper and Bioremediation

ARUN JOSHI

Developed by TERI after seven years of research work and partly supported by the DBT (Department of Biotechnology), Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India, the Oilzapper is essentially a cocktail of five different bacterial strains that are immobilized and mixed with a carrier material (powdered corncob)

he Oilzapper feeds on hydrocarbon compounds present in crude oil and oily sludge (a hazardous hydrocarbon waste generated by oil refineries) and converts them into harmless CO2 and water. The Oilzapper is neatly packed into sterile polythene bags and sealed aseptically for safe transport. The shelf life of the product is three months at ambient temperature.

The scientific term for the above-mentioned process is bioremediation. 'Bio' refers to living and 'remediate' means to fix or cure. It is a branch of biotechnology that makes use of living organisms to reduce or eliminate environmental hazards resulting from accumulation of toxic chemicals, or hazardous waste. A first-of-its-kind solution, Oilzapper's uniqueness lies in the bio-friendly manner in which it detoxifies oily sludges and cleans up oil slicks.

Oilzapper has elicited tremendous response in India and abroad. The BPCL (Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd), the IOCL (Indian Oil Corporation Ltd), the ONGC (Oil and Natural Gas Corporation), the OIL (Oil India Ltd), the HPCL (Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd), and the RIL (Reliance Industries Ltd) are some of its consumers.