Response of bacterial biosorbents to chemical treatment as influenced by cell membrane structure and impact on the adsorption behaviour of dyes

Abstract

The impact of cell membrane structure and adsorption capacity of dyes due to chemical treatment on Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria was studied. The adsorption was found to occur through a chemisorption mechanism. The adsorption capacity of treated bacteria was higher (68.49-161.29 mg/g) than untreated bacteria (9.37-29.11 mg/g) during the removal of methylene blue. Furthermore, the treatment allowed bacteria to adsorb methyl orange, which was not removed by untreated bacteria. The applied chemical treatment is therefore influenced by the cell membrane structure and could be considered to improve the adsorption capacity of bacteria for the removal of dyes from polluted water.