Premium
Influence of Sulfur Concentration on Bioleaching of Heavy Metals from Industrial Waste Sludge
Author(s) -
Lin YenHui,
Juan MuLing,
Huang HauLiang,
Tsai HuiYing,
Lin Pearl HsuiPing
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
water environment research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.356
H-Index - 73
eISSN - 1554-7531
pISSN - 1061-4303
DOI - 10.2175/106143010x12609736966720
Subject(s) - bioleaching , sulfur , chemistry , sulfate , acidithiobacillus thiooxidans , industrial waste , environmental chemistry , nickel , copper , nuclear chemistry , metallurgy , waste management , acidithiobacillus ferrooxidans , materials science , organic chemistry , engineering
The bioleaching process, including acidification and solubilization of heavy metals, is a promising method for removing heavy metals from industrial waste sludge. Solubilization of heavy metals in industrial waste sludge is governed by adding elemental sulfur. A sulfur concentration exceeding 0.5% (w/v) inhibits sulfate production and the activity of acidophilic bacteria. Sulfate production was described well by a substrate inhibition expression in Haldane's kinetics. After 15 days of bioleaching, 79 to 81% copper, 50 to 69% lead, and 49 to 69% nickel were solubilized from sludge with a sulfur concentration of 0.5 to 1.0% (w/v). Experimental results indicated that the optimal sulfur concentration for the maximum solubilization rate of copper and nickel was 0.5% (w/v) and 1.0% (w/v) for lead. The profiles of denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis confirmed that indigenous acidophilic Acidithiobacilli ( A. thiooxidans and A. ferrooxidans ) existed and were the dominant species in the bioleaching process.
Accelerating Research
Robert Robinson Avenue,
Oxford Science Park, Oxford
OX4 4GP, United Kingdom
Address
John Eccles HouseRobert Robinson Avenue,
Oxford Science Park, Oxford
OX4 4GP, United Kingdom