Zn(II) biosorption properties of Botrytis cinerea biomass

The study was aimed of determining the Zn(II) sorption performance of Botrytis cinerea (B. cinerea) biomass as a new biosorbent. Heat inactivated biomass was used in the determination of optimum conditions. The rate and extent of accumulation were effected by pH, contact time and initial zinc ion concentrations. The uptake capacity of B. cinerea was increased by chemical and physical pretreatment of the cells when compared with the native biomass. The maximum removal of Zn(II) at pH 5.0–6.0 was found to be 12.98 ± 0.9623 mg g−1 at initial Zn(II) ion concentration of 100 mg l−1 by heat inactivated biomass. Freundlich and Langmuir isotherm models were used to evaluate the data and regression constants were derived. The biosorbent was regenerated using 10 mM HCl solution, with up to 98% recovery and reused five times in biosorption–desorption cycles successivelly. Competitive biosorption experiments were performed with zinc in the presence of copper, cadmium and nickel ions simultaneously. The nature of the possible cell–metal ions interactions was also evaluated by chemical and instrumental analysis including infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray energy dispersion analysis.