• CaC

Elbey Babayev, PhD

Title of the Research Project:

Bioremediation of Organochlorine Pesticides in Soils of Azerbaijan

Main Goals of the Research Project:

  • Identify aboriginal microorganisms and plants capable of degrading organochlorine pesticides (OCPs)
  • Study the degradation mechanism of OCPs
  • Create a technology for purifying OCPs using microorganisms and plants.

Short Description of the Research Project

Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) are highly resistant to degradation and can accumulate even in remote areas far from OCP emissions. OCPs include several compounds, such as dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), aldrin, chlordane, dieldrin, endrin, heptachlor and mirex. These chemicals were used in large quantities worldwide, and some of them are still in use today. OCPs bioaccumulate in fat tissues, undergo biomagnification and may be found anywhere. In addition to being adverse to human health, OCPs are known to affect terrestrial and aquatic organisms, which makes them a serious threat to biodiversity and contribute to ecosystem degradation. The scientific goal of the proposed project is to confirm that bioremediation is an effective and environmentally friendly method for removing OCPs from contaminated soils.

Department:

Institute of Chemistry of Additives

Home University/Academy:

Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, Baku, Azerbaijan

German Postdoc-Tandem-Partner:

Dr. Leonard Böhm, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany

German Host:

Prof. Dr. Rolf-Alexander Düring, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany

Managed by:

Bielefeld University