ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Bioleaching Potential of Indigenous Bacterial
Consortia from Gold-Bearing Sulfide Ore
of Ta Nang Mine in Vietnam
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1
Institute of Biotechnology, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi 10000, Vietnam
2
Graduate University of Science and Technology, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi 10000, Vietnam
3
Institute of Geological Sciences, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi 10000, Vietnam
Submission date: 2021-04-06
Final revision date: 2021-08-04
Acceptance date: 2021-08-17
Online publication date: 2022-01-17
Publication date: 2022-01-28
Corresponding author
Quyet-Tien Phi
Institute of Biotechnology, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, 18-Hoang Quoc Viet, Cau Giay Dist., 10000, Hanoi, Viet Nam
Pol. J. Environ. Stud. 2022;31(1):803-813
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ABSTRACT
To date, bioleaching using bacterial consortia is widely regarded as an eco-friendly alternative
to the traditional mining approaches due to its cost-effectiveness, feasibility, and sustainability.
In the present study, for the first time, gold-bearing sulfide ore collected at Ta Nang mine, Vietnam was
mineralogically characterized and subjected to bioleaching trial using indigenous bacterial consortia.
The ore contains arsenopyrite, pyrite, galena, sphalerite, and chalcopyrite, of which the major metals
were iron (4.78%), arsenic (1.73%), lead (0.43), and zinc (0.33%). After enrichment, a total of 19 ironand
sulfur-oxidizing bacteria were isolated and classified into six distinct genera including three
previously described Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Acidithiobacillus, and three firstly reported heterotrophic
Glutamicibacter, Providencia, and Stenotrophomonas from gold ore origin. Moreover, an autotrophic
Acidithiobacillus sp. TNG6.3, sharing a 16S rRNA sequence of 95.1% identity with the closest sequence
of the type strain A. caldus KU, represented a novel candidate species. The establishment of bioleaching
utilizing enriched bacteria from gold ore consequently led to the removal of Ag (99.1%), Zn (37.9%),
As (37.0%), and Fe (32.2%) from ore after 21 days of treatment, respectively. The present findings
highlighted the potential of acidophilic bacteria originated from gold ores for extending applications
in bioleaching of metals in Vietnam.