Of the volatile organic chemicals present in common groundwater contaminants, trichloroethylene (TCE) is the one most commonly found. TCE has been shown to be biodegraded by axenic cultures of aerobic organisms. Pseudomonas cepacia G4 grown in chemostats with phenol demonstrated constant specific degradation rates for both phenol and trichloroethylene (TCE) over a range of dilution rates. Washout of cells from chemostats was evident at a dilution rate of 0.2/h at 28C. Increased phenol concentrations in the nutrient feed led to increased biomass production with constant specific degradation rates for both phenol and TCE. The addition of lactate to the phenol feed led to increased biomass production but lowered specific phenol and TCE degradation rates. The maximum potential for TCE degradation was about 1.1 g per day per g of cell protein. Cell growth and degradation kinetic parameters were used in the design of a recirculating bioreactor for TCE degradation. In the reactor, the total amount of TCE degraded increased as either reaction time or biomass was increased. TCE degradation was observed up to 300 microM TCE with no significant decreases in rates. On the average, the reactor was able to degrade 0.7 g of TCE per day per g of cell protein. The results demonstrate the feasibility of TCE bioremediation through the use of bioreactors. (Copyright (c) 1991, American Society for Microbiology.)