Heavy metal uptake capacities of common marine macro algal biomass

Biosorption of heavy metals is an effective technology for the treatment of industrial waste waters. The uptake capacities of the biomass of a group of nine marine macro algae for heavy metal ions (cadmium, copper and lead) were evaluated. Equilibrium isotherms for each biomass–heavy metal system were obtained from batch adsorption experiments. The maximum uptake capacities of the biomass ranged from around 0.8 to 1.6 mmol/g (dry), which were much higher than those of other types of biomass. The results indicated that the biomass of the marine algae is suitable for the development of efficient biosorbents for the removal and recovery of heavy metals from waste water.