The potential use of immobilized Bacillus cereus ATCC 14579 for biodegradation of natural rubber latex film added with Metroxylon Sagu pith form

The previous study reported that Bacillus cereus ATCC 14579 able to degrade natural rubber latex films added with Metroxylon Sagu pith waste form (MSPW/NR) and natural rubber (NR) latex films as main source of carbon and energy. Some attempts have been made to degrade them in the newly batch systems rather than disposing of them in landfill. Immobilization technique was performed to adsorb Bacillus cereus onto modified activated carbon. This work aims to study the potential of immobilized Bacillus cereus for biodegradation of MSPW/NR. The results revealed that 30% nitric acid for 2 hours impregnation time showed significant influence on Bacillus cereus adsorption. The highest adsorption capacity of Bacillus cereus was found to be 72.8% under its optimum conditions. The weight loss of MSPW/NR by 12.843 % were obtained after 14th days biodegradation period. Thus, immobilization of Bacillus cereus ATCC 14579 has potency to provide a biotechnological solution to the waste rubber and latex disposal problem.