Biosorption of chromium(VI) using a Sargassum sp. packed-bed column.

Chromium(VI) is present in several industrial wastewaters and it can cause health and environmental hazards above certain concentrations. Equilibrium studies have shown the feasibility of using Sargassum sp. algae for chromium removal from aqueous solutions by biosorption. However, for the design and operation of chromium biosorption processes, dynamic flow studies are required. The objective of the study was to examine chromium(VI) removal from an aqueous solution using a packed-bed column with Sargassum sp. algae as a biosorbent. The dynamic behavior of the biosorption column was investigated through experiments and the influence of operating conditions, such as initial chromium concentration, flow rate and amount of biosorbent, on the column removal capacity have been analyzed using the factorial design methodology. The capacity of removal obtained at optimum conditions was 19.06 mg of metal/g biosorbent.