Removal of heavy metals from aqueous waste using fresh water macro algae

Abstract

Heavy metals are used in various industries due to their newlinetechnological importance Waste waters from these industries contain metal newlineions having permanent toxic effect The term heavy metal refers to any newlinemetallic chemical element that has a relatively high density and is toxic or newlinepoisonous even at low concentrations Examples of heavy metals include newlinecopper Cu nickel Ni mercury Hg cadmium Cd arsenic As newlinechromium Cr thallium Tl and lead Pb Heavy metals are natural newlinecomponents of the earths crust and cannot be degraded or destroyed To a newlinesmall extent they enter our bodies via food drinking water and air As trace newlineelements some heavy metals are essential to maintain the metabolism of the newlinehuman body However at higher concentrations they are toxic Algae fungi newlineyeast and bacteria remove heavy metals from waste waters through functional newlinegroups such as ketones aldehydes and carboxyls on their cell walls newline newline