Microbial
evaluation and deterioration of paints and paint-products
O.F. Obidi*1, O.O. Aboaba1, M.S. Makanjuola2
and S.C.U. Nwachukwu1
1Department of Botany and Microbiology, University of Lagos - 11001, Nigeria
2 Department of Chemical Engineering, University
of Lagos - 11001, Nigeria
(Received: July 12, 2007; Revised
received: September
25, 2008; Accepted: October 10, 2008)
Abstract: The microbial quality of materials and
final products of a reputable paint industry in Lagos area were analysed.? The bacterial contaminants isolated in the
paint-products included Bacillus brevis, B. polymyxa, B. laterosporus,
Lactobacillus gasseri, L. brevis, Esherichia coli and Proteus mirabilis. The
fungal contaminants detected in the paints were mainly Aspergillus niger,
A. flavus and Penicillium citrinum. The microbial populations in the raw
materials ranged from 1.0 x 106 ? 9.5 x 106 cfu g-1
for bacteria and between 1.25 x 104 and 6.8 x 104 cfu g-1
for fungi while those present in packaging materials ranged from 3.45 x 106
? 7.65 x 106 cfu g-1 for bacteria and 2.4 x103
? 2.8 x 103 cfu g-1 for fungi respectively. The bacterial
populations in the fresh paint samples monitored every two weeks from the time
of production ranged from 1.6 x 101 ? 4.7 x 105 cfu ml-1
while the fungal populations ranged from 1.0 x 101 ? 5.5 x 103 cfu
ml-1 over a ten-month study period. The optical density at 600 nm
increased while transmittance, pH, specific gravity and viscosity of the paint
samples decreased over the period suggesting gradual deterioration of the
aesthetic qualities of the paint-products with time as indicated by the
measured parameters.
Key
words: Paints, Contaminants,
Deterioration, Aesthetic qualities
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