4. Conclusions
This study has demonstrated the potential of water bamboo husk as
biosorbent for removing heavy metal ions from water. Water bamboo
husk is easy to obtain in warm areas, especially in Asia, and free of expense.
The related sorbent preparation from this agricultural waste is
simple. In the current study, seven studied metal ions showed affinity
to the prepared water bamboo husk biosorbent, with Cu2+, Cr3+,
Pb2+, andFe3+ having the strongest binding.Metal ions having a higher
affinity to the sorbent (such as Fe3+) were trapped more efficiently at
low feed concentrations. The adsorbed metal ions could be efficiently
desorbed by a dilute strong acid solution. Moreover, water bamboo
husk particles exhibited a greater metal ion capacity (2 to 3 fold) in a
flow-through column process than a static setup. Based on these findings,
it is reasonable to suggest that water bamboo husk is a biosorbent
suitable formetal ion trapping andmay be further applied in solid phase
extraction or other adsorption applications.