Effectiveness of using oleaginous microalgae as a green biosorbent to remove copper from aqueous media

Abstract

Copper (Cu) is a non-biodegradable heavy metal and present in the environment that represents risks to the ecosystem and human health, leading to a major environmental issue globally. In this study, we evaluated the potential use of ten microalgal strains as biosorbents for decontaminating copper in aqueous media. As this strategy requires low energy consumption and no use of chemicals, it is greatly suitable for environmentally decontaminating copper. Among the ten strains tested, Acutodesmus obliquus AARL G090 showed the highest efficiency for copper removal (more than 85%) and enhanced the microalgal lipid accumulation (up to 38.14%). The scanning electron microscope–energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM–EDS) proved that the copper was not only transferred to microalgal cells but also got attached to the microalgal cell surface. This study has proven a promising ‘green’ strategy to rapidly remove the heavy metal and economically possible application in the production of microalgal lipid as a biodiesel feedstock.