Review on Biosorption of Arsenic From Contaminated Water

Abstract

Arsenic contamination in water is a worldwide problem. It is spreading in the environment as a result of numerous natural and anthropogenic sources having a massive influence on health of human and ecological systems. In order to mitigate this problem, there are various conventional technologies available for the removal of arsenic like oxidation, coagulation and flocculation, ion exchange, and membrane processes. However, there are various limitations associated with these techniques such as high cost and generation of toxic byproducts due to which attention has been paid to biosorption in the past few years, as it is an eco‐friendly as well as cost‐effective technique. Arsenic biosorption by various low‐cost adsorbents and biosorbents such as activated carbons, algae, submerged plants, bacteria, fungi, plant, and fruit wastes have been surveyed and critically reviewed in this paper along with their sorption efficiencies. Furthermore, the nonlinear models of adsorption dynamics and thermodynamic feasibility of arsenic biosorption together with detailed analysis of biological mechanisms of arsenic ion uptake by bacteria, fungi and algae has been discussed in detail in the present work. Alternatives of disposal of arsenic loaded sludge obtained after the biosorption of arsenic has also been addressed.

Meso- and macroporous silica-based arsenic adsorbents: effect of pore size, nature of the active phase, and silicon release

“…0.1 g of adsorbent was placed in a 50 mL centrifuge tube with 20 mL of arsenic solution at different pH (3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8)(9), obtained by adding NaOH or HCl. Different concentrations of arsenic were tested, from 1 to 200 mg/L.…”

“…4 There are various factors that can influence the speciation, mobility, bioavailability, and solubility of arsenic in water, as pH, redox potential, competing ions, and biological transformation, determining different toxicity levels. [5][6][7][8] For these reasons, global (and European) policies consider arsenic remediation urgent, and there are nowadays several removal methods developed, including precipitation, filtration, electrocoagulation, membrane processes, and adsorption. [9][10][11][12] Among them, adsorption is becoming a more and more studied and applied technology, thanks to the high efficiency, low cost, regeneration possibility, and flexibility.…”

Role of biochar in promoting circular economy in the agriculture sector. Part 1: A review of the biochar roles in soil N, P and K cycles

“…Biochar, a pyrogenic material derived from the thermochemical conversion of biomass in an oxygen-depleted environment, has come into the limelight in the last decade for its potential to foster soil C sequestration. In addition, biochar can be a multifunctional player for local circularity across agriculture, energy and environmental domains in several processes such as substitution of activated carbon [1], nutrient retention [2], enhancement of anaerobic conditions in biorefinery processes [3], immobilisation of heavy metals in mining soils [4] decontamination of water [5], and sorption of pesticides [6]. Generally, physical (e.g., large porosity and surface area) and chemical (e.g., recalcitrant aromatic C structure, hydrophobicity, cation exchange capacity) properties of biochar are the key factors bringing these multi-beneficial utilities [2,7,8].…”

A comparative study on Fe(III)-chitosan and Fe(III)-chitosan-CTAB composites for As(V) removal from water: preparation, characterization and reaction mechanism

“…Many technologies have been applied to the remediation of iAs-contaminated water, including electrocoagulation, chemical precipitation, membrane ltration, adsorption, ion exchange, and bioremediation (Dadwal and Mishra, 2017). Among these technologies, adsorption is an easy but effective and economical method (Gadd, 2009).…”