EVALUATION OF A NEW BIO-BASED-FLOCULANT EXTRACTED FROM WATER-MELON, ON THE REMOVAL OF LEAD IONS FROM WATER

Abstract

The current study, aims to eliminate lead ions in drinking water or industrial waste, by the coagulation and flocculation process, adopting a coupling of NaOH with a new bioflocculant "BFM" extracted from the crust and fruit of a variety of melon named "Pineapple". The removal process was tested on 100mg / l samples of pb2 + ions, as a function of pH, NaOH and "BFM" doses. the experimental results gave an elimination efficiency which reaches about 99% for a pH 11, and a dose of "BFM" of 1 mg / l. A comparative study of the sedimentation rate between our bio-flocculant and a commercial flocculant "sodium alginate" showed a very competitive performance of "BFM".