Abstract Non-viable biomass of Pseudomonas putida immobilized in agar–agar was used as adsorbent to remove aluminum from aqueous solutions. In batch assays, adsorption equilibrium was reached after 45 min and… Click to show full abstract
Abstract Non-viable biomass of Pseudomonas putida immobilized in agar–agar was used as adsorbent to remove aluminum from aqueous solutions. In batch assays, adsorption equilibrium was reached after 45 min and 95% of 2.7 mg/L Al 3 + were adsorbed. Immobilized biomass was packed to obtain a fixed-bed column and the dynamic behavior in continuous mode was established through breakthrough curves. At different flow rates (0.5 and 1.0 mL/min) the adsorption capacity of the column did not change, but removal percentage was higher at the lowest flow rate (64.92% and 44.34%, respectively). The fixed-bed column presented a higher biosorption capacity than that obtained in batch experiments (0.15 and 0.09 mg Al3+/g beads, respectively), and showed stability for up to 12 successive adsorption/desorption cycles with negligible loss in adsorption efficiency. We concluded that this packed biosorbent could be a good alternative for the removal of Al3+ from aqueous solutions.
               
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