Microbial consortium: A promising strategy for bioleaching of metals from industrial wastes

Advances in biohydrometallurgical technology have made it possible to utilize the microorganisms and their metabolites in the recovery and resource recycling of metals from secondary sources like industrial wastes. Various strategies have been developed to apply these microorganisms to improve the efficiency of the method. Use of microbial consortia is one of the promising strategies. Microbial consortia can be applied in various approaches and this chapter discusses the current applications and some promising emerging technologies that can assist in enhancing the bioleaching performance. Furthermore, interesting applications of microbial consortia for metal recovery from different industrial wastes are described along with the role of consortia and mechanisms involved.