Equilibrium biosorption studies of wastewater U(VI), Cu(II) and Ni(II) by the brown alga Cystoseira indica in single, binary and ternary metal systems

Biosorption of U(VI), Cu(II) and Ni(II) onto Cystoseira indica was investigated in single, binary and ternary metal systems. The single-ion biosorption results showed that the affinity order of metal ions on C. indica was Cu(II) > Ni(II) > U(VI) and the mechanism of metal ions biosorption on this biomass was physisorption. The binary and ternary biosorption data were interpreted using the multicomponent isotherms. Competitive biosorption results showed that the metal biosorption decreased with increasing the concentrations of other metal ions and an antagonistic effect was observed in binary and ternary systems. Also, the inhibitory effect increased with increasing the initial metal ions concentrations. (author)