Lead Biosorption by Biosorbent Materials of Marine Brown Algae U. pinnatifida, H. fusiformis, and S. fulvellum

Biosorbents of nonliving, dried marine brown algae Undaria pinnatifida, Hizikia fusiformis, and Sargassum fulvellum were investigated for their lead biosorption performances. As the amount of biosorbent added was increased, the lead removal by biosorbent materials increased but the lead biosorption capacities decreased. However the lead biosorption capacity by the biosorbent materials increased with increasing initial lead concentration and pH in the range of $C_o\;10\~500\;mg/L$. Among the biosorbent materials used in this study, the lead biosorption capacity in the solutions with no pH adjustment decreased in the following sequence: U. pinnatifida > H. fusiformis > S. fulvellum. Equilibrium parameters based on Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm were determined. It was found that the lead biosorption by biosorbent materials were expressed by the Langmuir isotherm better than the Freundlich isotherm.