Biosorption of Pb(2+) by Saccharomyces cerevisiae in static and dynamic adsorption tests

This paper demonstrates the Pb(2+) adsorption capacity and adsorption rate of Saccharomyces cerevisiae by both static and dynamic testing to verify its feasibility as a heavy metal bio-absorbent in wastewater treatment. The static testing was divided into two parts. First, we tested S. cerevisiae by itself, and then we tested immobilized S. cerevisiae. In static testing of the non-immobilized S. cerevisiae, the Pb(2+) adsorption capacity and adsorption rate increased up to 6.52 mg/g and 52.94%, respectively, with time. After immobilization, the Pb(2+) adsorption capacity and adsorption rate reached 10 mg/g and 80%, respectively. In dynamic testing, the optimal saturated adsorption capacity of immobilized S. cerevisiae for Pb(2+) was 6.64 mg/g. In addition to the static and dynamic testing of adsorption capacity and rate, we used SEM imaging to analyze the mechanics of adsorption, and the images showed that the cell wall played the major roll in Pb(2+) adsorption.