Department of Chemistry, P.M.B. Gujrati Science College Indore India

 Anaerobic micro-organisms can reduce sulphate to sulphide. Anoxic conditions are frequently found at the interface between water and sediment or around sulphate dissolved in pore-water of the sediment. Bacterial action produces hydrogen sulphide which is toxic to respiratory organisms.^1,2 Bass-Becking³ has described the bacterial community called sulfuretum which causes reduction of sulphate to sulphur. The reduction rate has been described to depend on concentration of bacteria, sulphate concentration and temperature.^4,5 In the present work the optimum conditions for the biogenic reduction of sulphate through the bacteria present in the distillery effluent has been investigated. A perusal of results obtained shows the reduction of sulphate as an ongoing process in the presence of distillery effluent and the dissolved sulphates was getting continuously reduced. The distillery effluent contained mainly carbohydrates and some proteins and its anoxic conditions were favorable to the bacterial reduction. The sulphate reduction in presence of distillery effluents was biogenic in nature. The data obtained showed that a low acidity or the presence of mild alkalinity was favorable for the sulphate reduction.