BIOREMEDIATION OF COPPER (II) FROM AQUEOUS SOLUTION USING TAMARIND KERNEL POWDER

Abstract

Heavy metal pollution is nowadays one of the most important environmental concerns. Anthropogenic activities like metalliferous mining and smelting, agriculture, waste disposal or industry discharge a variety of metals such as Ag, As, Au, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, Pd, Pt, Rd, Sn, Th, U and Zn, which can produce harmful effects on human health when they are taken up in amounts that cannot be processed by the organism. Physical and chemical methods have been proposed for the removal of these pollutants. Conventional methods to remediate heavy metals contaminated site are excavation and solidification/ stabilization, these technologies are suitable to control contamination but not permanently remove heavy metals. Nevertheless, they have some disadvantages, among them cost-effectiveness limitations, generation of hazardous by-products or inefficiency. Biological methods solve these drawbacks since they are easy to operate, do not produce secondary pollution. Heavy metals having relatively high density are toxic at low concentration. Microorganisms and plant are usually used for the removal of heavy metals. Bioremediation is increasingly considered for clean-up of metal contaminated and polluted ecosystem. All the metals are toxic, but some of these are useful in low concentration. These large verity of heavy metals cause serious water pollution