Bead for removing dissolved metal contaminants
AssigneeAero-Terra-Aqua Technologies Corporation
InventorsBobby L. Summers, Jr., Lester B. Gress
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Abstract
A bead is provided which consists essentially of peat moss or other nonliving biomass immobilized by sodium silicate or polysulfone binder. The bead is effective to remove metal contaminants from dilute aqueous solutions. A method of making metal-ion-sorbing beads is provided, comprising combining peat moss or other nonliving biomass and liquid binder (preferably in a pin mixer where it is whipped), forming wet beads, and drying the beads. The liquid binder is preferably sodium silicate dissolved in water or polysulfone dissolved in methylene chloride.
Claims24
A bead consisting essentially of peat moss and sodium silicate, said sodium silicate acting as a binder to immobilize said peat moss, said bead being capable of sorbing a metal or metalloid dissolved in a dilute aqueous solution at a concentration of less than 10 parts metal or metalloid per million parts solution (ppm), said metal or metalloid being selected from the group consisting of silver, iron, chromium, cobalt, uranium, mercury, nickel, arsenic, aluminum, cadmium, lead, manganese, copper, and zinc, the exterior portion of said bead including peat moss.
A method of making a metal-ion-sorbing bead, said bead being effective to sorb metal ions from a dilute aqueous solution, said metal being selected from the group consisting of silver, iron, chromium, cobalt, uranium, mercury, nickel, aluminum, cadmium, lead, manganese, copper, and zinc, the method comprising the steps of:
- a) providing nonliving biomass and liquid binder to a chamber of an apparatus for mechanical spheronization, said chamber being equipped with means to impart high shear forces to the contents thereof;
- b) imparting high shear forces to the biomass and liquid binder, said high shear forces being effective to mix said biomass and binder together into a mixture;
- c) forming the mixture into wet beads;
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- d) drying the wet beads to form beads effective to sorb said metal ions from a dilute aqueous solution.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.