Biosorption of cadmium(II) and copper(II) from aqueous solution using red alga (Osmundea pinnatifida) biomass

The biosorption characteristics of cd(ii) and cu(ii) ions from aqueous solution using the red alga (osmundea pinnatifida) biomass were investigated as a function of ph,contact time,biomass dosage and initial metal concentrations at room temperature. langmuir and freundlich models were applied to describe the biosorption isotherm of the metal ions by osmundea pinnatifida biomass. langmuir model fitted the equilibrium data better than the freundlich isotherm. the metal sorption capacities increased with increase in the initial metal concentration. the maximum biosorption capacity (qmax) of that algae for cd(ii) and cu(ii) was found to be 10.02 and 6.94 mg/g,respectively,at optimum conditions of ph 5.0,contact time of 60 min and biomass dosage of 20 g/l. the sorption mechanisms were characterized using fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ftir). all results showed that osmundea pinnatifida biomass represents a potential for metal ions removal from aqueous solution.