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Biosorption of heavy metals by red algae (Palmaria palmata)

The research presented in this thesis entailed an investigation of heavy metal uptake by Palmaria palmata, a red marine alga. The alga was dry and organically certified. The heavy metals of interest were those commonly found in the wastewaters of the printed wiring board industry, namely Cu2+Pb2+, Cd2+, Zn 2+ and Ni2+. The ultimate objective of the work was to determine whether or not the factors expected to influence the metal uptake to the greatest extent could be optimized within functional ranges, leading eventually to process design (beyond the scope of this thesis). These factors were pH, temperature, initial concentration of metal in aqueous solution, and contact time. A number of preliminary experiments were performed to establish a basis for the design of the optimization studies. / Although it was not possible to adequately define optimal regions of operation for the biosorption of heavy metals by Palmaria palmata , general trends were elucidated, and the limitations of the methodology used were clarified. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.31190
Date January 2001
CreatorsBeaugeard, Marie.
ContributorsPrasher, S. O. (advisor)
PublisherMcGill University
Source SetsLibrary and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeElectronic Thesis or Dissertation
Formatapplication/pdf
CoverageMaster of Science (Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering.)
RightsAll items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated.
Relationalephsysno: 001810093, proquestno: MQ70380, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest.

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