Biosorption of nonylphenol by pure algae, field-collected planktons and their fractions

Algal samples were fractionated into lipid (LP), lipid free (LF), alkaline nonhydrolyzable carbon (ANHC), and acid nonhydrolyzable carbon (NHC) fractions, and were characterized by the quantitative ¹³C multiCP NMR technique. The biosorption isotherms for nonylphenol (NP) were established and compared with previously published data for phenanthrene (Phen). The log K_OC values are significantly higher for the field-collected plankton samples than for the commercial algae and cultured algae samples, correlating with their lipid contents and aliphatic carbon structure. As the NHC fraction contains more poly(methylene) carbon, it exhibits a higher biosorption capacity. The sorption capacities are negatively related to the polarity index, COO/N–C=O, polar C and O-alkyl C concentrations, but are positively related to the H/O atomic ratios and poly(methylene) carbon. The higher sorption capacities observed for NP than for Phen on the investigated samples are explained by specific interactions such as hydrogen bonding and π–π interaction. - Highlights: • Quantitative ¹³C NMR technique was applied to algae and their fraction samples. • The biosorption isotherms for the ANHC and NHC fractions are nonlinear. • Polarity and lipid affect the biosorption capacity of NP. • The sorption capacity is positively related to polymethylene carbon. • The hydrogen and π–π interactions between NP and algae could be important. - The NHC fractions are chemically and structurally different from other fractions, and their biosorption for NP is much higher than that of the bulk algae