Energetic and Other Quantitative Aspects of Microbial Hydrocarbon Utilization: An Introduction

Hydrocarbons represent "energy-rich" growth substrates for aerobic microorganisms and in principle allow high growth yields. In contrast, the energy gain with hydrocarbons in many anaerobic microorganisms is very low. The maximum gain of energy per mol of hydrocarbon degraded in the catabolism is predicted from calculated Delta G values. Some anaerobic degradation reactions of hydrocarbons with very low-energy gain as well as anaerobic activation reactions of hydrocarbons deserve particular attention from a bioenergetic point of view.