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Continuous packed bed biosorption of copper
by immobilized seaweed biomass The
biosorption of copper by inactivated biomass of the brown seaweed Sargassum baccularia,
immobilized onto polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) gel beads, was investigated using a
laboratory-scale packed bed column. Continuous-flow column tests were performed to
determine breakthrough curves at two different column lengths. In both cases, a very broad
trailing edge of the breakthrough curve was observed, indicating the presence of
intraparticle diffusion resistance within the biomass beads. Such asymmetric breakthrough
curves could not be described by a simplified two parameter packed bed model. A positive
aspect of the PVA-immobilized biomass was that its copper uptake capacity remained
essentially unaltered over two consecutive cycles of adsorption-desorption. The biomass
beads could be regenerated for reuse with an aqueous solution containing 4 mM
ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid. The robustness and stability of the immobilized biomass
beads could lead to the development of an efficient and cost-effective bioremediation
technology for the removal and recovery of toxic metals from aqueous solutions.
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