Cleanup of industrial effluents containing heavy metals: a new opportunity of valorising the biomass produced by brewing industry

• Type: Another Publication in an International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2013

Authors

EV Soares (Author) Other; Helena Soares (Author) FEUP

Journal

Title: Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology

Vol. 97

Pages: 6667-6675

ISSN: 0175-7598

Publisher: Springer Nature

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 18 Citations

ISI Web of Science

Scopus - 22 Citations

Scientific classification

FOS: Engineering and technology

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-006-8TG

DOI: 10.1007/s00253-013-5063-y

Abstract (EN): Heavy metal pollution is a matter of concern in industrialised countries. Contrary to organic pollutants, heavy metals are not metabolically degraded. This fact has two main consequences: its bioremediation requires another strategy and heavy metals can be indefinitely recycled. Yeast cells of Saccharomyces cerevisiae are produced at high amounts as a by-product of brewing industry constituting a cheap raw material. In the present work, the possibility of valorising this type of biomass in the bioremediation of real industrial effluents containing heavy metals is reviewed. Given the auto-aggregation capacity (flocculation) of brewing yeast cells, a fast and off-cost yeast separation is achieved after the treatment of metal-laden effluent, which reduces the costs associated with the process. This is a critical issue when we are looking for an effective, eco-friendly, and low-cost technology. The possibility of the bioremediation of industrial effluents linked with the selective recovery of metals, in a strategy of simultaneous minimisation of environmental hazard of industrial wastes with financial benefits from reselling or recycling the metals, is discussed.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 9