An Extracellular Biopolymer Produced by Pseudomonas Fluorescence C-2 as Biosorbent to Remove Ni (II) from Aqueous Solutions

The objective of this study is to assess the environmentally friendly Ni(II) adsorption from synthetic wastewater using extracellular biopolymer(PS-2) produced by Pseudomonas fluorescence C-2. The ability of PS-2 to remove the Ni(II) ions was investigated by using batch biosorption procedure. The effects such as pH, dosage of biosorbent, Ni(II) initial concentration and sorbate-sorbent contact time and agitating speed on the adsorption capacities of PS-2 were studied. Biosorption equilibriums were rapidly established in about 60 min and the adsorption kinetics followed the pseudo-second order kinetic model. The maximum Ni(II) adsorption capacity determined from Langmuir isotherm were 80.50 mg /g PS-2 at pH 5.0 ,at 25±2°C and shaker speed 150 rpm, respectively. The carboxyl , hydroxyl and amino groups of the PS-2 were involved in chemical interaction with the Ni(II) ions depicted by scanning electron microscopic (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic (FTIR) results. The study points to the potential of new use of extracellular biopolymer PS-2 as an effective biosorbent for the removal of Ni (II) and from environmental and industrial wastewater.