%0 Journal Article %T Flow Rate and Interference Studies for Copper Binding to a Silica-Immobilized Humin Polymer Matrix: Column and Batch Experiments %A Jorge L. Gardea-Torresdey %A Carolina Contreras %A Guadalupe de la Rosa %A Jose R. Peralta-Videa %J Bioinorganic Chemistry and Applications %D 2005 %I Hindawi Publishing Corporation %R 10.1155/bca.2005.1 %X Batch and column experiments were performed to determine the Cu(II) binding capacity of silica-immobilized humin biomass. For column studies, 500 bed volumes of a 0.1 mM Cu(II) solution were passed through humin packed columns at the flow rates of 1, 1.5, 2, and 3 mL/min. The biopolymer showed an average Cu binding capacity of 12 ± 1.5 mg/g and a Cu recovery of about 96.5 % ± 1.5. The breakthrough points for Cu(II) alone were approximately 420, 390, 385, and 300 bed volumes for the flow rates of 1, 1.5, 2 and 3 mL/min, respectively. The interference studies demonstrated that at low concentrations, the hard cations Ca(II) and Mg(II) did not seem to represent a major interference on Cu(II) binding to the humin biopolymer. The selectivity showed by this biopolymer was Cu(II)>Ca(II)>Mg(II). On the other hand, batch experiments showed that Ca(II) %U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/bca/2005/426738/abs/