Uranium Uptake by Montmorillonite-Biomass
Complexes
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Abstract
Montmorillonite clays and biomass have noticeable metal
sorption
capacity. Clays or biomass are difficult to separate from the solution
when used as sorbent materials. A methodology to retain biomass and
improve separation processes is to generate clay biopolymers matrices
from fungal biomass grown on a natural Montmorillonite (MMT). The
objective of this study is to generate and characterize clay biopolymers
matrices and evaluate their uranium adsorption capacity. The generated
clay biopolymers (BMMTs) were characterized through X-ray diffraction,
measurement of the apparent diameter of particles, and electrophoretic
mobility. Some BMMTs showed greater Uranium-specific adsorption capacity
than that found for MMT. The X-ray diffraction analysis indicated
that the Uranium was located partially in the clay interlayer. The
BMMT surfaces were more negatively charged than the MMT surface, thus
favoring their uranium uptake. Also, immobilization of the biomass
and better coagulation of the system were achieved. These preliminary
studies indicate that BMMTs have a great potentiality for uranium
uptake processes