A. Fernández Cirelli

Cr(VI) and Cr(III) removal from aqueous solution by raw and modified lignocellulosic materials: a review.

In aqueous systems, chromium usually exists in both trivalent and hexavalent oxidation states, being Cr(VI) of particular importance and concern due to its great toxicity. Industrial sources of Cr(VI) are leather tanning, mining of chrome ore, production of steel and alloys, etc. The most common conventional method for Cr(VI) removal is reduction to Cr(III) at pH 2.0 and precipitation of Cr (OH)(3) with lime at pH 9-10. The disadvantage of precipitation is the disposal of the solid waste. Adsorption of Cr by different low cost materials seems to be a suitable choice for wastewater treatment. Many by-products of agriculture have proved to be suitable low cost adsorbents for Cr(VI) and Cr(III) removal from water. Lignocellulosic residues, which include both wood residues and agricultural residues, have adsorption capacity comparable to other natural sorbents, but they have the advantage of very low or no cost, great availability and simple operational process. This study is a review of the recent literature on the use of natural and modified lignocellulosic residues for Cr adsorption. The Cr maximum adsorption capacity and the adsorption mechanism under different experimental conditions are reported when possibly.

Hg(II) removal from water by chitosan and chitosan derivatives: a review.

Mercury (Hg) is one of the most toxic heavy metals commonly found in the global environment. Its toxicity is related to the capacity of its compounds to bioconcentrate in organisms and to biomagnify through food chain. A wide range of adsorbents has been used for removing Hg(II) from contaminated water. Chitosan is obtained by alkaline deacetylation of chitin. The adsorption capacity of chitosan depends on the origin of the polysaccharide, and on the experimental conditions in the preparation, that determine the degree of deacetylation. A great number of chitosan derivatives have been obtained by crosslinking with glutaraldehyde or epichlorohydrin among others or by grafting new functional groups on the chitosan backbone with the aim of adsorbing Hg(II). The new functional groups are incorporated to change the pH range for Hg(II) sorption and/or to change the sorption sites in order to increase sorption selectivity. The chemical modification affords a wide range of derivatives with modified properties for specific applications. Hg(II) adsorption on chitosan or chitosan derivatives is now assumed to occur through several single or mixed interactions: chelation or coordination on amino groups in a pendant fashion or in combination with vicinal hydroxyl groups, electrostatic attraction in acidic media or ion exchange with protonated amino groups. This review reports the recent developments in the Hg(II) removal in waste water treatment, using chitosan and its derivatives in order to provide useful information about the different technologies. When possibly the adsorption capacity of chitosan and chitosan derivatives under different experimental conditions is reported to help to compare the efficacy of the Hg(II) removal process. A comparison with the adsorption capacity of other low-cost adsorbents is also tabled.

Stability of diatom composition in a variable lake environment: Lake Chascomús, Argentina

Abstract Water and surficial sediment samples of Lake Chascomús and its tributaries were analyzed in order to relate changes in diatom community structure to chemical variables. Over the course of 13 months of sampling, the lake exhibited major changes in water level (1.15–1.98 m average depth), total dissolved solids (821–1972 mg l−1), silica (0.098–8.22 mg l−1), and total algal biomass (21.4–145.9 μg Chl a l−1). However, despite these large fluctuations, the diatom species composition was relatively stable. The dominant species in the water column was always Synedra berolinensis (68.9%–90.1% total frustules), with Fragilaria construens and F. brevistriata as subdominants. In the sediments the latter two species dominated the frustule counts. These results indicate an unusual floristic stability of this eutrophic ecosystem, with persistent dominance by broadly tolerant, generalist species.