Biosorption Of Fluoride On Non Living Biomass Of Microalga S.Platensis Column Studies

Biosorption of fluoride on non living biomass of microalga S.platensis immobilized on calcium alginate beads was investigated in a fixed bed column. Experiments were conducted to study the effect of parameters such as pH of feed solution bed height flow rate of feed and initial concentration of fluoride in feed solution. Optimum operating conditions were found to be pH5.2 Flow rate5 mLmin Bed height30 cm and initial concentration of F-100 ppm. A maximum uptake capacity of 82.65 mg F-g biosorbent was observed under these conditions. Yoon-Nelson model fitted well with the experimental data of breakthrough curves. The column was regenerated using 0.1 M HCl as an eluent and sorption-desorption studies were carried out for four cycles. Case studies conducted on real sample showed that apart from decrease in fluoride concentration a reduction in alkalinity sulphate and nitrate concentration were also observed upon biosorption. The mechanism of biosorption and surface structure of biomass were examined by Attenuated Total Reflectance ATR and Scanning Electron Microscope SEM respectively.