Zinc Biosorption by Waste Streptomyces fradiae Biomass: Equilibrium and Kinetics

Waste Streptomyces fradiae biomass from pharmaceutical industry was successfully used for Zn(II) removal from aqueous solutions. In the present study process parameters (initial pH of the solution, amount of biomass, initial metal concentration, stirring speed and contact time) and their influence on Zn(II) biosorption were investigated and optimized. Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption isotherms were used to describe sorption behavior between the waste biomass and the Zn ions. The biosorption process was better described by the Langmuir adsorption isotherm with 61.09 mg g-1 maximum adsorption capacity. Lagergren and Ho models were used to analyze the kinetic data. Ho model fitted better to the experimental results.