Removal of uranium from solution using residual brewery yeast: combined biosorption and precipitation

Whilst unwashed preparations of biomass from a local brewery had an apparentmaximum biosorption capacity for uranium of 360mg/g (dry weight biomass) washingreduced this maximum to 150mg/g. Homogenization of both biomass preparations andrecovery of cellular debris had no significant effect on the maximum biosorptioncapacities although at lower equilibrium concentrations of uranium differences inthe biosorption capacities were detected. When unwashed biomass was retained by asemi-permeable membrane 40% of uranium used in the experiments precipitated outsidethat membrane. Therefore a significant proportion of the uranium removed fromsolution, and previously attributed to biosorption by the yeast biomass,resulted from precipitation brought about by interaction with low molecularweight components loosely associated with the biomass.     

Studies on the biosorption of uranium by a thermotolerant, ethanol-producing strain of Kluyveromyces marxianus

The ability of residual biomass from the thermotolerant ethanol-producing yeast strain Kluyveromyces marxianus IMB3 to function as a biosorbent for uranium has been examined. It was found that the biomass had an observed maximum biosorption capacity of 120?mg U/g dry weight of biomass. The calculated value for the biosorption maximum, obtained by fitting the data to the Langmuir model was found to be 130?mg U/g dry weight biomass. Maximum biosorption capacities were examined at a number of temperatures and both the observed and calculated values obtained for those capacities increased with increasing temperature. Decreasing the pH of the biosorbate solution resulted in a decrease in uptake capacity. When biosorption reactions were carried out using sea-water as the diluent it was found that the maximum biosorption capacity of the biomass increased significantly. Using transmission electron microscopy, uranium crystals were shown to be concentrated on the outer surface of the cell wall, although uranium deposition was also observed in the interior of the cell.     

The effect of pulse voltage and capacitance on biosorption of uranium by biomass derived from whiskey distillery spent wash

Biosorption of uranium by residual biomass from The Old Bushmill's Distillery Co. Ltd., Bushmills, Co. Antrim, Northern Ireland, following exposure to short and intense electric pulses has been examined. The biomass was prepared from the distillery spent wash and consisted of non-viable yeast and bacterial cells. As shown previously, untreated biomass had a maximum biosorption capacity of 170?mg uranium/g dry weight biomass. When biosorption reactions were placed between two electrodes and exposed to electric pulses with field strengths ranging from 1.25–3.25?kV/cm at a capacitance of 25?μF, biosorption increased from 170?mg of uranium to 275?mg uranium/g dry weight biomass. The data were obtained from biosorption isotherm analyses and taken as the degree of biosorption at residual uranium concentrations of 3?mM. In addition, when the capacitance of the electric pulses increased from 0.25?μF to 25?μF at a fixed pulse field strength the degree of biosorption increased from 210?mg uranium to 240?mg uranium/g dry weight biomass. The results suggest that application of short and intense electric pulses to biosorption reactions may play an important role in enhancing microbial biosorption of toxic metals/radionuclides from waste water streams.     

Biosorption of uranium by cross-linked and alginate immobilized residual biomass from distillery spent wash

Residual biomass from a whiskey distillery was examined for its ability to function as a biosorbent for uranium. Biomass recovered and lyophilised exhibited a maximum biosorption capacity of 165–170?mg uranium/g dry weight biomass at 15?°C. With a view towards the development of continuous or semi-continuous flow biosorption processes it was decided to immobilize the material by (1) cross-linking with formaldehyde and (2) introducing that material into alginate matrices. Cross-linking the recovered biomass resulted in the formation of a biosorbent preparation with a maximum biosorption capacity of 185–190?mg/g dry weight biomass at 15?°C. Following immobilization of biomass in alginate matrices it was found that the total amount of uranium bound to the matrix did not change with increasing amounts of biomass immobilized. It was found however, that the proportion of uranium bound to the biomass within the alginate-biomass matrix increased with increasing biomass concentration. Further analysis of these preparations demonstrated that the alginate-biomass matrix had a maximum biosorption capacity of 220?mg uranium/g dry weight of the matrix, even at low concentrations of biomass.     

Loss of cell components during rehydration of dried Rhodotorula glutinis and its implications for lead uptake

Microbial cells are routinely dried and ground before they are used in metal biosorption studies. In this work, a metal biosorbent was prepared by drying biomass of the yeast Rhodotorula glutinis in an oven at 70°C for 24 h followed by grinding. Two forms of the prepared biosorbent particles, washed and unwashed, were examined for their ability to remove lead from solution. It was found that the unwashed biosorbent exhibited higher lead uptake than the washed biosorbent. Analysis of the supernatant of washed cells incubated in water and that of unwashed cells incubated in lead solution revealed the presence of protein, carbohydrates, organic acids and inorganic phosphate. Overall, the washed and unwashed cells leached, respectively, 14.5 and 13.4% of their initial dry weight (100 mg). Acid‐base titration data revealed that the leached components contained several potential binding sites for metal cations with carboxyl and phosphoryl groups being particularly important. The higher level of lead uptake exhibited by the unwashed biomass was attributed to the fact that it leached smaller amounts of cell constituents with proton binding sites relative to the washed cells.     

The use of flocculating brewer's yeast for Cr(III) and Pb(II) removal from residual wastewaters

The use of inexpensive biosorbents to sequester heavy metals from aqueous solutions, is one of the most promising technologies being developed to remove these toxic contaminants from wastewaters. Considering this challenge, the viability of Cr(III) and Pb(II) removal from aqueous solutions using a flocculating brewer's yeast residual biomass from a Portuguese brewing industry was studied. The influence of physicochemical factors such as medium pH, biomass concentration and the presence of a co-ion was characterised. Metal uptake kinetics and equilibrium were also analysed, considering different incubation temperatures. For both metals, uptake increased with medium pH, being maximal at 5.0. Optimal biomass concentration for the biosorption process was determined to be 4.5?g dry weight/l. In chromium and lead mixture solutions, competition for yeast binding sites was observed between the two metals, this competition being pH dependent. Yeast biomass showed higher selectivity and uptake capacity to lead. Chromium uptake kinetic was characterised as having a rapid initial step, followed by a slower one. Langmuir model describes well chromium uptake equilibrium. Lead uptake kinetics suggested the presence of mechanisms other than biosorption, possibly including its precipitation.     

Heavy metal adsorption properties of a submerged aquatic plant (Ceratophyllum demersum)

Heavy metals can be adsorbed by living or non-living biomass. Submerged aquatic plants can be used for the removal of heavy metals. In this paper, lead, zinc, and copper adsorption properties of Ceratophyllum demersum (Coontail or hornwort) were investigated and results were compared with other aquatic submerged plants. Data obtained from the initial adsorption studies indicated that C. demersum was capable of removing lead, zinc, and copper from solution. The metal biosorption was fast and equilibrium was attained within 20 min. Data obtained from further batch studies conformed well to the Langmuir Model. Maximum adsorption capacities (q(max)) onto C. demersum were 6.17 mg/g for Cu(II), 13.98 mg/g for Zn(II) and 44.8 mg/g for Pb(II). Kinetics of adsorption of zinc, lead and copper were analysed and rate constants were derived for each metal. It was found that the overall adsorption process was best described by pseudo second-order kinetics. The results showed that this submerged aquatic plant C. demersum can be successfully used for heavy metal removal under dilute metal concentration.     

Biosorption of cadmium and lead ions by ethanol treated waste baker's yeast biomass

The biosorption of cadmium and lead ions from artificial aqueous solutions using waste baker's yeast biomass was investigated. The yeast cells were treated with caustic, ethanol and heat for increasing their biosorption capacity and the highest metal uptake values (15.63 and 17.49 mg g(-1) for Cd(2+) and Pb(2+), respectively) were obtained by ethanol treated yeast cells. The effect of initial metal concentration and pH on biosorption by ethanol treated yeast was studied. The Langmuir model and Freundlich equation were applied to the experimental data and the Langmuir model was found to be in better correlation with the experimental data. The maximum metal uptake values (qmax, mg g(-1)) were found as 31.75 and 60.24 for Cd(2+) and Pb(2+), respectively. Competitive biosorption experiments were performed with Cd(2+) and Pb(2+) together with Cu(2+) and the competitive biosorption capacities of the yeast biomass for all metal ions were found to be lower than in non-competitive conditions.     

Removal of chromate anions from aqueous stream by a cationic surfactant-modified yeast

The removal of chromate anions (CrO(4)(2-)) from aqueous solution by a cationic surfactant-modified yeast was studied in a batch system. Cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) was used for biomass modification; it substantially improved the biosorption efficiency. The influences of solution pH, CrO(4)(2-) anion concentrations and biomass concentration on the biosorption efficiency were investigated. The biosorption of chromate anions by modified yeast was strongly affected by pH. The optimum pH for biosorption of CrO(4)(2-) by modified yeast was 4.5-5.5. Zeta potential values of modified and unmodified yeast were determined at various pH values. Concentrations ranging from 5.2 to 208 mg/l Cr(VI) were tested and the biosorptive removal efficiency of the metal ions from aqueous solution was more than 99.5%. Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms were used to evaluate the data and the regression constants were determined.     

Enhancement of Lead(II) Biosorption by Microalgal Biomass Immobilized onto Loofa (Luffa cylindrica) Sponge

A unicellular green microalga, Chlorella sorokiniana, was immobilized on loofa (Luffa cylindrica) sponge and successfully used as a new biosorption system for the removal of lead(II) ions from aqueous solutions. The biosorption of lead(II) ions on both free and immobilized biomass of C. sorokiniana was investigated using aqueous solutions in the concentration range of 10–300 mg/L. The biosorption of lead(II) ions by C. sorokiniana biomass increased as the initial concentration of lead(II) ions increased in the medium. The maximum biosorption capacity for free and immobilized biomass of C. sorokiniana was found to be 108.04 and 123.67 mg lead(II)/g biomass, respectively. The biosorption kinetics were found to be fast, with 96 % of adsorption within the first 5 min and equilibrium reached at 15 min. The adsorption of lead(II) both by free and immobilized C. sorokiniana biomass followed the Langmuir isotherm. The biosorption capacities were detected to be dependent on the pH of the solution; and the maximum adsorption was obtained at a solution pH of about 5. The effect of light metal ions on lead(II) uptake was also studied and it was shown that the presence of light metal ions did not significantly affect lead(II) uptake. The loofa sponge‐immobilized C. sorokiniana biomass could be regenerated using 0.1 M HCl, with up to 99 % recovery. The desorbed biomass was used in five biosorption‐desorption cycles, and no noticeable loss in the biosorption capacity was observed. In addition, fixed bed breakthrough curves for lead(II) removal were presented. These studies demonstrated that loofa sponge‐immobilized biomass of C. sorokiniana could be used as an efficient biosorbent for the treatment of lead(II) containing wastewater.     

Ethanol production at 45 °C by Kluyveromyces marxianus IMB3 during growth on molasses pre-treated with Amberlite® and non-living biomass

The use of high concentrations of molasses as a fermentation feed-stock for ethanol production is normally precluded by the presence of inhibitory compounds. Use of the thermotolerant, ethanol-producing yeast strain Kluyveromyces marxianus IMB3 in fermentations containing high concentrations of molasses resulted in sub-optimal production of ethanol. The results suggested that this was caused by the presence of inhibitory materials rather than an intolerance to increased concentrations of ethanol. In the current study we describe the pretreatment of molasses preparations with either an Amberlite^® monobed mixed ion-exchange resin or non-living microbial biomass from a local distillery. In the study molasses samples diluted to yield a final sugar concentration of 160?g/l were used as the substrate. Control fermentations using the untreated molasses dilutions yielded a maximum ethanol concentration of 40?g/l, representing 49% of the maximum theoretical yield. Fermentations using molasses samples pre-treated with Amberlite^® or non-living biomass yielded maximum ethanol concentrations of 58 and 54?g/l, representing 71 and 66% of the maximum theoretical yield, respectively. The results suggest that pre-treatment brings about removal of toxic or inhibitory materials from the fermentation feed-stock and we believe that such pre-treatments, particularly using the less expensive non-living biomass preparations may find a role in processes concerned with the commercial production of ethanol from molasses using this microorganism.     

Characterization of acetone-washed yeast biomass functional groups involved in lead biosorption

The mechanism of lead cation biosorption by acetone-washed biomass of Saccharomyces uvarum was investigated by chemical modifications and spectroscopic monitoring of the cell components. Reacting the carboxyl groups with propylamine, which neutralizes these anions, considerably decreased the metallic ion uptake, indicating that negatively charged carboxyl groups play an important role in lead bisorption due to electrostatic attraction. After lead biosorption the photoacoustic Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy showed a change in the symmetrical stretch of the carboxylate groups of the acetone-washed yeast biomass, and the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy oxygen peak was also found to be shifted. These findings support the hypothesis that lead uptake occurs mainly through binding to the carboxyl group. In X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy the nitrogen peak decreased after the biosorption of lead, suggesting that nitrogen-containing groups are also involved in the biosorption process. Acylation of amino groups was shown to increase the lead biosorption capacity. The acylation reaction converts the positively charged amino group to an amide capable of coordination to lead cations. Deproteination by boiling the biosorbent with NaOH increased the lead uptake. The acetone-washed biomass uptake of lead from an aqueous solution at ph 5.5 was 48.9 mg/g dry weight. Pure chitin adsorbed 48.8 mg lead/g dry weight. Mannan isolated from S. uvarum did not adsorb lead at all. Electrostatic attraction of the carboxyl groups and other anions present in the acetone-washed biomass, and complexation with nitrogen atoms, especially in chitin, appear to be the main mechanisms involved in lead cation biosorption. (c) 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Biotechnol Bioeng 55: 1-10, 1997.     

Biosorption of heavy metals by distillery-derived biomass

Biomass derived from the Old Bushmill's Distillery Co. Ltd., Northern Ireland was harvested and examined for its ability to function as a biosorbent for metals such as Cu, Zn, Fe, Pb and Ag. Binding studies were carried out using biosorption isotherm analysis. Although the material had previously been shown to be capable of efficient U biosorption, its affinity for Cu, Zn, Fe was lower. However, binding studies with Pb demonstrated that it had a maximum biosorption capacity for that metal of 189?mg/g dry weight of the biomass. In addition, the biomass exhibited a maximum biosorption capacity of 59?mg/g dry weight for Ag and this compared very favourably with previously quoted values for other industrial sources of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. On the basis of the biosorption isotherm analyses carried out in this study, preference for this series of metals by the biomass was found to be Pb?>?U?>?Ag?>?Zn?≥?Fe?>?Cu.     

The effect of electric field stimulation on the biosorption of uranium by non-living biomass derived from Kluyveromyces marxianus IMB3

Summary Non-living biomass from the thermotolerant, ethanol-producing yeast strain Kluyveromyces marxianus IMB3 is capable of uranium biosorption. The biomass has an observed biosorption capacity of 115mg uranium/g dry weight of biomass with a calculated value of 127mg uranium/g dry weight. Following exposure of the biomass to electric fields of 2,500 V/cm for 20msec. the maximum biosorption capacity (observed or calculated) for uranium did not differ significantly for the untreated biomass. However, at lower residual concentrations of uranium (<10mg/L) the capacity of the treated biomass for uranium was significantly increased above values obtained with untreated material.     

Studies on the biosorption of uranium by Talaromyces emersonii CBS 814.70 biomass

Residual biomass, produced by the thermophilic fungus, Talaromyces emersonii CBS 814.70, following growth on glucose-containing media, was examined for its ability to take up uranium from aqueous solution. It was found that the biomass had a relatively high observed biosorption capacity for the uranium (280 mg/g dry weight biomass). The calculated maximum biosorption capacity obtained by fitting the data to a Langmuir model was calculated to be 323 mg uranium/g dry weight biomass. Pretreatment of the biomass with either dilute HCl or NaOH brought about a significant decrease in biosorptive capacity for uranium. Studies on the effects of variation in temperature on the biosorptive capacity demonstrated no significant change in binding between 20°C and 60°C. However, a significant decrease in biosorptive capacity was observed at 5°C. Binding of uranium to the biomass at all temperatures reached equilibrium within 2 min. While the routine binding assays were performed at pH 5.0, adjustment of the pH to 3.0 gave rise to a significant decrease in biosorption capacity by the biomass. The biosorptive capacity of the biomass for uranium was increased when extraction from solution in sea-water was examined.     

Biosorption of mercury from aqueous solution by Ulva lactuca biomass

The mercury biosorption onto non-living protonated biomass of Ulva lactuca, as an alternative method for mercury removal from aqueous solutions, was investigated. Batch equilibrium tests showed that at pH 3.5, 5.5 and 7 the maxima of mercury uptake values, according to Langmuir adsorption isotherm, were 27.24, 84.74 and 149.25 mg/g, respectively. The ability of Ulva lactuca biomass to adsorb mercury in fixed-bed column, was investigated as well. The influence of column bed height, flow rate and effluent initial concentration of metal was studied. The adsorbed metal ions were easily desorbed from the algal biomass with 0.3 N H₂SO₄ solution. After acid desorption and regeneration with distilled water, the biomass could be reused for other biosorption assays with similar performances.     

Cadmium biosorption by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bacillus</Emphasis><Emphasis Type="Italic"> circulans</Emphasis> strain EB1

Summary A heavy metal resistant bacterium, Bacillus circulans strain EB1 showed a high cadmium biosorption capacity coupled with a high tolerance to this metal when grown in its presence. Bacillus circulans EB1 cells grown in the presence of 28.1 mg cadmium/l were capable of removing cadmium with a specific biosorption capacity of 5.8 mg Cd/g dry wt biomass in the first 8 h. When the cells were pre-conditioned with low concentrations of cadmium in pre-grown medium, the uptake was increased to 6.7 mg Cd/g dry wt biomass. The maximum uptake of␣cadmium was during mid-logarithmic phase of growth. The resting cells (both wet and dry) of EB1 were also able to biosorb cadmium. Specific biosorption capacities of wet and dry biomass were 9.8 and 26.5 mg Cd/g dry wt biomass, respectively. Maximum cadmium removals by both wet and dry cells were at pH 7.0. The results showed that the cadmium removal capacity of resting cells was markedly higher than that of growing cells. Since both growing and resting cells had a high biosorption capacity for cadmium, EB1 cells could serve as an excellent biosorbent for removal of cadmium from natural environments.     

Biosorption of textile dyes by biomass derived from Kluyveromyces marxianus IMB3

Since it had previously been found that biomass derived from the thermotolerant ethanol-producing yeast strain Kluyveromyces marxianus IMB3 exhibited a relatively high affinity for heavy metals it was decided to determine whether or not it might be capable of textile dye biosorption. To this end, biosorption isotherm analysis was carried out using the biomass together with commonly-used textile dyes including Remazol Black B, Remazol Turquoise Blue, Remazol Red, Remazol Golden Yellow and Cibacron Orange. Although the dyes Remazol Black B, Remazol Turquoise Blue and Remazol Red adhered to the Langmuir model, the remaining dyes failed to do so. The observed biosorption capacities at equilibrium dye concentrations of 100?mg/l were compared and it was found that the biomass exhibited a significant affinity for each dye. The potential use of this biosorptive material in the bioremediation of textile processing effluents is discussed.     

pH effects on the removal of Cu2+, Cd2+ and Pb2+ from aqueous solution by waste brewery biomass

An industrial strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae collected from the waste of a brewing industry was used to remove lead, cadmium and copper from aqueous solutions (1?mm). Metal removal efficiency by using either biomass suspension directly diluted into the metal solutions or biomass previously incubated and washed in distilled water was compared. In all experiments with unwashed biomass a shift in the medium pH from 4.5 to a final value in the 7.0–8.0 range occurred. This pH increase was responsible for a metal precipitation effect associated to the metal biosorption. A very different pH profile was observed when washed biomass was used leading to different removal profiles for Cd²⁺ and Pb²⁺ and a similar one for Cu²⁺. In the absence of biomass, medium components and/or the excreted intracellular products proved to interfere in the metal removal and to be responsible for 80% Pb²⁺ precipitation, in the pH 4.5–5.0 range. To initial metal solution pH, leading to the lowest residual ion concentrations, after 96?h of contact with unwashed biomass and in the absence of pH adjustment, was 4.5–5.0. Continuous or stepwise adjustment of medium pH to this range during the process was unfavourable for metal removal, being the continuous adjustment the worst procedure. In this case, Cd²⁺ was not biosorbed and Cu²⁺ removal decreased from 76 to 33%. However, Pb²⁺ was always extensively removed (89%) and only slightly affected by pH control. The global results suggest different removal mechanisms for each cation. Cu²⁺ was removed by both metal sorption and precipitation, due to the pH shift that occurred during the process, while Cd²⁺ removal showed to be completely dependent of this pH shift. Pb²⁺ was totally and quickly removed, by precipitation, in the presence of the biomass suspension and at pH 4.5. Moreover, the biosorbent changes occurring during the process played an important role in the metal removal when non-viable microbial biomass is used.     

Potential use of green algae as a biosorbent for hexavalent chromium removal from aqueous solutions

The hexavalent chromium Cr(VI) poses a threat as a hazardous metal and its removal from aquatic environments through biosorption has gained attention as a viable technology of bioremediation. We evaluated the potential use of three green algae (Cladophora glomerata, Enteromorpha intestinalis and Microspora amoena) dry biomass as a biosorbent to remove Cr(VI) from aqueous solutions. The adsorption capacity of the biomass was determined using batch experiments. The adsorption capacity appeared to depend on the pH. The optimum pH with the acid-treated biomass for Cr(VI) biosorption was found to be 2.0 at a constant temperature, 45?°C. Among the three genera studied, C. glomerata recorded a maximum of 66.6% removal from the batch process using 1.0?g dried algal cells/100?ml aqueous solution containing an initial concentration of 20?mg/L chromium at 45?°C and pH 2.0 for 60?min of contact time. Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm equations fitted to the equilibrium data, Freundlich was the better model. Our study showed that C. glomerata dry biomass is a suitable candidate to remove Cr(VI) from aqueous solutions.