Journal of Applied Biotechnology & Bioengineering Biosorption Kinetics of Heavy Metals from Fertilizer Industrial Waste Water Using Groundnut Husk Powder as an Adsorbent Submit Manuscript | http://medcraveonline.com Volume 2 Issue 6 - 2017 1 Department of Biochemistry, Federal University Wukari, Nigeria 2 Department of Public Health, Federal Ministry of Health, Nigeria *Corresponding author: Tatah, Verwiyeh Silas, Department of Biochemistry, Federal University Wukari, Taraba State, Nigeria, Tel :+2348065982609; Email: Received: October 31, 2016 | Published: April 13, 2017 Research Article J Appl Biotechnol Bioeng 2017, 2(6): 00049 Abstract Groundnut husk (GH) was used as an adsorbent to remove Mn2+, Zn2+ and Pb2+ ions from fertilizer industrial wastewater. FTIR-spectrum shows the participation of aromatic compounds (C=C), Aldehydes (C=O) and Alkenes (C=C) in adsorption due to their absence in the adsorbent after the process. Batch adsorption experiments were conducted to examine the effect of adsorbent mass, pH and contact time on adsorption of Mn2+, Zn2+ and Pb2+ from fertilizer industrial waste water. The results showed that Mn2+, Pb2+ and Zn2+ attained maximum percentage removal of 61.62%, 99.93% and 100% at adsorbent dose of 50g, 60g and 20g respectively. However the maximum percentage removal of Mn2+ and Pb2+ was achieved at pH 6 for 80min. while that of Zn2+ was achieved at pH 3 for 60min. Langmuir biosorption isotherm provided the best fit for sorption of Mn2+ and Pb2+ using groundnut husk as indicated by their correlation coefficient ( ) of 0.558 and 0.441 hence the process was based on a physisorption mechanism. The kinetic studies showed that the biosorption process followed the pseudo-second order reaction order. This study has demonstrated that groundnut husk can be efficiently used as low cost alternative adsorbent for remediation of Mn2+, Zn2+ and Pb2+ from heavy metals contaminated wastewater. Keywords: Groundnut husk; Heavy metals; Biosorption; Adsorption isotherm; Kinetic models; Wastewater Abbreviations: GH: Groundnut husk; FTIR: Fourier Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy; AWBs: agricultural waste biomass; PAC: Powder Activated Carbon Introduction Pollution of the environment with toxic substances in waste water effluents is a major concern for human health and environmental quality, with heavy metals being one of the most dangerous pollutants. It has been reported that the toxicity due to metallic discharges into the environment far exceeds the combined total toxicity of all radioactive and organic waste [1]. Although small amounts of many heavy metals are necessary in normal biological cycles, most become toxic at high concentrations. Heavy metals are toxic to living organisms because they tend to persist in the environment, as they are non biodegradable and bio-accumulate, becoming concentrated in the food chain [2]. Metals such as lead, nickel, cadmium, manganese, chromium, cop-per, mercury and zinc are known to be significantly toxic [3]. Manganese in particular is considered a pollutant mainly because of its organoleptic properties; in high concentrations, it causes neurological disorders [2]. High concentrations of nickel cause serious health effects, including liver and heart damage, skin irritation, nasal cancer, headache and dermatitis [1]. Consequently, the treatment of heavy metal contaminated waste water remains a topic of global concern since waste water collected from municipalities, communities and industries must ultimately be returned to receiving waters or to the land [3]. Conventional treatment methods, have been found to be very expensive and difficult to maintain due to high capital and operational costs [4,5] and also results to the generation of chemical sludge/secondary waste that must be treated before disposal as it also poses hazards and pollution risks to the environment [6]. These challenges associated with conventional methods, have triggered interest and research for more efficient and eco-friendly heavy metal treatment methods. Biosorption is a physiochemical process that occurs naturally in certain biomass which allows it to passively concentrate and bind contaminants onto its cellular structure [7]. Pollutants interact naturally with biological systems through various routes, if not properly managed; these pollutants may seep into any biological entity within the range of exposure. The most problematic contaminants include heavy metals, pesticides and other organic compounds which can be toxic to wildlife and humans even at small concentration. Occurrence of heavy metals in our environment causes adverse effects on flora, fauna and also results to contamination of groundwater through leaching [8]. Industrial wastes are waste generated by industrial activity which includes any material that is rendered useless during a manufacturing process such as that of factories, mills and mines. Some examples of industrial waste include; chemical solvents, paints, sand paper, paper products, industrial by-products, metals and radioactive wastes most of which are indiscriminately