Packed-bed Column Reactor Research Articles

Peptide‐based Organocatalyst on Stage: Functionalizing Mesoporous Silica by Tetrazine‐Norbornene Ligation

AbstractOrganocatalysis via the enamine mechanism developed to one of the most relevant tools in carbonyl chemistry and is widely used in asymmetric organic synthesis. In this work, a strategy is presented to conveniently immobilize a peptide‐based catalyst on silica supports for use in continuous flow catalysis reactions. A set of different porous silica supports is investigated spanning from mesoporous silica particles with defined pore sizes suitable for packed bed column reactors to silica monoliths with hierarchical meso‐macropore spaces. While the silica supports are functionalized with norbornene entities, the peptide‐based organocatalyst is modified with a tetrazine moiety, enabling the immobilization via inverse electron‐demand Diels‐Alder (IEDDA) reaction. The ligation results in catalyst loadings up to 0.2 mmol g‐1, without compromising the mesopore network. The catalytic activity of the materials is proven by the asymmetric C−C coupling reaction of n‐butanal to ß‐nitrostyrene proceeding in high yield and enantioselectivity in both batch and continuous flow setups.

New kinetic models for predicting the removal of oil and grease from food-processing industry wastewater

Biochemical accumulation rate of Serratia marcescens SA30 to remove the oil and grease (O&G) contaminant from a wastewater can be described using the kinetic models of packed-bed column reactor (PBCR) treatment system. The aim of this study was to develop the linear and logarithmic equations for predicting the efficiency of O&G removal from food-processing industry wastewater. The results showed that the performance of PBCR treatment process can achieve nearly 100% efficiency when the PBCR experiments were run using the initial O&G concentrations of 26.9 and 33.5 g L−1 with a volumetric flow rate of 0.18 L h−1. The applicability of the linear and logarithmic equations represented a quick and reliable method to monitor the trend of O&G removal by the PBCR treatment process contributes to strengthening the future biotechnological methods of treating oil-contaminated wastewater in the tropical environment.

Clarification of apple, grape and pear juices by co-immobilized amylase, pectinase and cellulase

In this study, the use of co-immobilized amylase, pectinase and cellulase enzymes for clarification of apple, grape and pear juices were investigated. Four different co-immobilization method was applied and the highest activity was observed for co-immobilized enzymes onto silica gel. The effect of the enzyme units used in the co-immobilization, reaction temperature and time on turbidity and reducing sugar concentration were optimized by Response Surface Methodology (RSM) via Design Expert Software 8.0.7.1. applying 3-factor Box-Behnken design. Co-immobilized samples were reacted with the substrate solution in batch type and feedback packed bed column reactors and according to turbidity and reducing sugar concentration values, batch reactor efficiency was found to be higher. Finally, freshly squeezed apple, pear and grape juices were interacted with co-immobilized enzymes in the batch reactor system, and turbidity and reducing sugar concentrations were monitored over time. Changes were also observed in antioxidant activities depending on the enzyme treatment.

Immobilization of Halomonas halodurans and Bacillus halodurans in packed bed bioreactor for continuous removal of phenolic impurities in waste water

Phenol is an organic contaminant widely distributed in wastewater. Biodegradation is one of the suitable methods used to remove phenol from the wastewater. In this study, the bacterial laccase and pectinase were analyzed and phenol degradation potential was studied. A total of six bacterial strains were selected and their phenol degrading potentials were studied. Laccase and pectinase producers were screened on substrate agar plates and several strains produced these enzymes in submerged fermentation. Among these enzyme producing strains, strain PD8 and PD22 exhibited potent phenol degrading ability than other strains. These two bacterial strains (Halomonas halodurans PD8 and Bacillus halodurans PD22) exhibited maximum growth in phenol-supplemented culture medium. These two organisms grown well at wide pH values (pH 3.0 and 10.0), survive well between 20 °C and 50 °C, and showed growth between 1 and 10% sodium chloride concentration. The lyophilized enzyme from PD8 and PD22 were immobilized with alginate beads cross liked with divalent cations. At 1% alginate, the binding efficiency was 40.2 ± 2.9% and it improved up to 2.0% concentration (67.5 ± 4.2%) and further increase on alginate concentration affected binding efficiency. Phenol degradation was maximum within 10 h of treatment in the immobilized packed bed column reactor (83.1 ± 3.2%) and colour removal efficiency was maximum at 12 h treatment (82.1 ± 3.9%). After four successive experimental trials more than 40% efficiency was achieved.

Adsorptive column studies for removal of Reactive Blue 4 dye using dry cells of Rhizopus oryzae (MTCC 262)

The biosorption potential of dry biomass of Rhizopus oryzae (MTCC 262) in removing a textile dye Reactive Blue 4 from dye contaminated wastewater using up-flow packed-bed column reactor has been studied. The impact of operating parameters like flow rate of dye solution, bed height of column and concentration of dye in the feed solution on the removal potential has also been studied. The Adam-Bohart Model, Yoon-Nelson Model and Thomas model are used for the analysis of experimental data. Dye removal of 71.81% is obtained using dry biomass at flow rate of 2 mL min-1of dye solution, bed height of 15 cm and influent dye concentration of 200 mg L-1. Adsorbed dye can be successfully recovered from dry R.oryzae (MTCC 262) biomass of packed bed column reactor by running 1 (N) NaOH solution. Results demonstratesignificant reduction in Reactive Blue 4 concentration after the biosorption process.

High-solid enzymatic hydrolysis of sugarcane bagasse and ethanol production in repeated batch process using column reactors

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13205-021-02932-3.

Effective removal of Cd2+, Zn2+ by immobilizing the non-absorbent active catalyst by packed bed column reactor for industrial wastewater treatment

Cadmium and zinc are leading heavy metal pollutants causing serious health problems when discharged into the aquatic environments. The present investigation focused on the bioaccumulation of Cd2+ and Zn2+depending on the sorption process by Bacillus amyloliquefaciens HM28. The selected bacterium was multi-metal (Zn2+, Pb2+, Cd2+, Cu2+ and Li+) and antibiotic (cefotaxime, ampicilin, nalidixic acid, ceftazidime, penicillin and kanamycin) resistance was resolved. The identified strain showed maximum resistance onCd2+ (2575 ppm) and Zn2+ (1300 ppm). The sorption of Cd2+ and Zn2+ by a dried bacterium was investigated. Biosorption of Cd2+ was maximum (98.4 ± 5.2%) at 100 mg/L concentration and maximum Zn2+ (98.3 ± 1.5%) was detected in the medium containing 150 mg/L metal ion. Bioremoval was maximum after 30 min contact time with dried biomass and the absorption rate improved. The optimum Cd2+ and Zn2+ bioremoval yield of 93 ± 4.4% and 89.8 ± 4.3% were observed, at pH 7.0 and 7.5, respectively. Despite the significant reduction in growth rate, heavy metals increased nitro-blue tetrazolium reduction from 11 ± 1.3 to 67 ± 3.3%. Dehydrogenase activity elevated due to heavy metal stress. Bacterial biomass was immobilized in a glass column (20 cm × 2 cm). Biosorption of Cd2+ and Zn2+ ions were performed in a packed bed column. The breakthrough time of Cd2+ was 210 min at 1 mL/min flow rate and it decreased 94 min at 5 mL/min flow rate, whereas 240 min at 1 mL/min, and 90 min at 5 mL/min, respectively. The absorption capacity was 4.87 ± 0.8 to 5.43 ± 0.5 mg/g for Cd2+ and 3.85 ± 0.3 to 4.53 ± 0.4 mg/g for Zn2+. The present findings revealed the potential of B. amyloliquefaciens HM28 biomass in Cd2+ and Zn2+ biosorption, with feasibility in the bioremediation of Cd2+ and Zn2+ contaminated water.

Immobilized GDEst-95, GDEst-lip and GD-95RM lipolytic enzymes for continuous flow hydrolysis and transesterification reactions

In this study lipolytic biocatalysts GD-95RM, GDEst-95 and GDEst-lip were immobilized by encapsulation in calcium alginate beads. All three immobilized biocatalysts demonstrated significantly increased thermal stability at 60–70 °C temperatures and the activity of GD-95RM lipase increased by 50% at 70–80 °C following the immobilization. Moreover, encapsulated GDEst-95 esterase retained higher than 50% lipolytic activity after 3 months of incubation with butanol (25%) and ethanol (50%); GDEst-lip enzyme possessed 50% activity after 2 months of treatment with ethanol (25%) and methanol (25%); and GD-95RM lipase displayed higher that 50% activity after two-week incubation with methanol (50%). All three immobilized enzymes displayed long-term storage capability (>50% activity) at least until 3 months at 4 °C. It was also detected that immobilized GD-95RM and GDEst-lip can perform flow hydrolysis of both avocado oil and p-NP dodecanoate in prototype packed-bed column reactor. The analysis of continuous transesterification of avocado or sunflower oil with ethanol or methanol as substrates confirmed that encapsulated GD-95RM and GDEst-lip enzymes is a useful approach to produce fatty acid alkyl esters.

Modeling and Optimization of Carbon Dioxide Removal in Packed Bed Column Reactor

Global warming due to greenhouse gases has become a serious global issue. Extensive efforts are being made to fighting this phenomenon through carbon capture as carbon dioxide (CO2) is its major contributor. This study focused on CO2 capture in packed bed column reactor using Poly-(D) glucosamine under the various process parameters such as temperature, feed flow rate and mass of the adsorbent. Statistical design of experiments was carried out in order to analysis the effect process parameters on the capacity of CO2 capture in packed bed column. The obtained results show that feed flow rate has the significant affect compared to others. The maximum of 956 mg of CO2 is captured under the following operating conditions; temperature of 40oC, feed flow rate of 30 ml/min and 0.25 g of the Poly-(D) glucosamine. The ability of Poly-(D) glucosamine to capture the CO2 in packed bed column is confirmed.

A Comparative Study of Swarm Intelligence-Based Optimization Algorithms in WSN

Global warming due to greenhouse gases has become a serious global issue. Extensive efforts are being made to fighting this phenomenon through carbon capture as carbon dioxide (CO2) is its major contributor. This study focused on CO2 capture in packed bed column reactor using Poly-(D) glucosamine under the various process parameters such as temperature, feed flow rate and mass of the adsorbent. Statistical design of experiments was carried out in order to analysis the effect process parameters on the capacity of CO2 capture in packed bed column. The obtained results show that feed flow rate has the significant affect compared to others. The maximum of 956 mg of CO2 is captured under the following operating conditions; temperature of 40oC, feed flow rate of 30 ml/min and 0.25 g of the Poly-(D) glucosamine. The ability of Poly-(D) glucosamine to capture the CO2 in packed bed column is confirmed.

Facile One-Pot Immobilization of a Novel Thermostable Carboxylesterase from Geobacillus uzenensis for Continuous Pesticide Degradation in a Packed-Bed Column Reactor

The novel carboxylesterase gene (est741) was cloned from Geobacillus uzenensis. The optimal pH and temperature of Est741 were 8.0 and 50 °C. Through site-directed mutation, the optimum temperature of the mutant M160K(EstM160K) was increased from 50 to 60 °C, and showed enhanced T1/2 of 2.5 h at 70 °C in comparison to the wild type (1.3 h). EstM160K was successfully expressed Pichia pastoris and EstM160K fermentation broth was directly immobilized on epoxy-functionalized supports via a one-pot strategy to obtain the immobilized enzyme lx-EstM160K. Additionally, lx-EstM160K showed enhanced T1/2 of 36.8 h at 70 °C in comparison to free enzyme. lx-EstM160K could degrade various pyrethroid pesticides. After 40 min reaction with 50 U of the lx-EstM160K, the malathion removal was 95.8% with a malathion concentration of 20 mg/L. When 2.5 g lx-EstM160K was added to the 10 mL column reactor with the concentration of bifenthrin was 500 mg/L and the transfer rate of the pump was 0.7 mL/min, the degradation rate of lx-EstM160K to bifenthrin was 90.4%. lx-EstM160K exhibited high operational stability and maintained 72% initial activity after ten batches of continuous reaction for bifenthrin pesticide biodegradation.

Enhanced enzyme-based CO2 capture in countercurrent packed-bed column reactors

An enhanced CO2 hydration process with human carbonic anhydrase II (hCA II) enzyme immobilized on packing surface and micro-particles dispersed in the liquid phase was proposed. This innovative hybrid enzymatic process was simulated in a countercurrent packed-bed column reactor via an unsteady-state, isothermal, 3-D model including continuity, momentum and species (including the biocatalytic micro-particles) balance equations in the liquid and gas phases, filtration equation describing the accumulation of biocatalytic micro-particles in packed bed, chemical reaction and diffusion in hCA II enzyme washcoat and liquid film. In the hybrid enhanced immobilized enzyme CO2 capture system, hCA II enzyme supported on the surface of micro-particles works as a free solution-phase enzyme, which instantaneously catalyzes CO2 hydration reaction and upgrades significantly CO2 conversion, particularly in the region where the enzymatic process with immobilized hCA II enzyme on the packing surface is strongly limited by the diffusion. The impact of hCA II enzyme immobilized on the micro-particles surface is more important when the foremost amount of hCA II enzyme is immobilized on the packing via larger washcoat layers with enhanced mass transfer resistance, at larger feed buffer concentration and lower thermodynamic dissociation constant of the protonated acid form of buffer. Enhanced CO2 hydration process provide a reasonable CO2 conversion at a much lower liquid velocity and permits to significantly downgrade the height of the packed bed. These immobilized enzyme CO2 capture systems intend to maximize the mass transfer in packed-bed column reactors to expand the degree of utilization of the large hydration turnover of hCA II enzyme.

Integrated production of prebiotic xylooligosaccharides and high value cellulose from oil palm biomass

Oil palm empty fruit bunch (OPEFB) fibre, which is the byproduct of fruits being stripped from the fresh fruit bunch in palm oil mill, was evaluated in terms of the production of xylooligosaccharides (XOs) and the solid residue was treated for cellulose recovery. Chemoenzymatic hydrolysis that consists of chemical fractionation of OPEFB fibre to isolate xylan with further enzymatic hydrolysis to XOs in a packed bed column reactor (PBCR) was performed. An immobilised xylanase of Thermomyces lanuginosus at the concentration of 8.25 fungal xylanase unit wheat/mililitre (FXUW mL−1) was employed on a PBCR to hydrolyse the xylan at 55 °C and pH 5.5. The yields of XOs are composed of xylopentaose, xylotetraose, xylotriose and xylobiose, successfully produced from the OPEFB-xylan, shown in HPLC analysis with the total production of 8,776 mg/L and the immobilised xylanase can be recycled up to six enzymatic treatment cycles. The solid residue generated from the xylan extraction was further treated with mild concentration of bleaching agents of 20% (v/v) formic acid and 5% (v/v) hydrogen peroxide at 85 °C. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis showed that the products obtained have the standard cellulose structure and functional group. Further analyses on the properties of the extracted cellulose in terms of crystallinity, thermal stability and morphology were conducted. The integrated process to produce XOs from OPEFB and recover cellulose from its byproduct is sustainable to extract fine chemicals from OPEFB.

Modeling of SO2 seawater scrubbing in countercurrent packed-bed columns with high performance packings

Packed-bed columns with fourth generation random packings offer an attractive way to implement SO2 seawater scrubbing on-board large marine ships because of small two-phase pressure drop, high capacity and high SO2 removal efficiency. SO2 seawater scrubbing was investigated via an Eulerian 3-D model based on the macroscopic volume-averaged continuity, momentum, energy and species balance equations in the liquid and gas phases. The performance of SO2 seawater absorption process in packed-bed column reactors with fourth generation random packings can be enhanced by the increase of liquid flow rate and the decrease of liquid temperature. Consequently, SO2 seawater scrubbing on-board large marine ships improves significantly in the temperate oceans with an average temperatures between 10 and 20 °C. The increase of pressure improves the driving force of gas-liquid mass transfer and subsequently SO2 removal process which becomes completely at lower values of liquid-to-gas ratio. SO2 seawater scrubbing at higher pressure increases the capital cost and energy requirement but offers major improvements such as total removal of SO2 at large sulfur content of fuel and prevention of losing of engine power because of the large counter pressure to the incoming exhaust. The operation with extra packed bed height allows to amplify the gas–liquid contact time and consequently the absorption process performance.

Biodegradation of high concentration phenol using sugarcane bagasse immobilized Candida tropicalis PHB5 in a packed-bed column reactor

Biodegradation of phenolic compounds in wastewater can be effectively carried out in packed bed reactors (PBRs) employing immobilized microorganisms. A low-cost, reusable immobilization matrix in PBR can provide economic advantages in large scale removal of high concentration phenol. In this study, we evaluated the efficiency and reusability of sugarcane bagasse (SCB) as a low-cost immobilization support for high strength phenol removal in recirculating upflow PBR. An isolated yeast Candida tropicalis PHB5 was immobilized onto the SCB support and packed into the reactor to assess phenol biodegradation at various influent flow rates. Scanning electron microscopy exhibited substantial cell attachment within the pith and onto the fibrous strand surface of the SCB support. The PBR showed 97% removal efficiency at the initial phenol concentration of 2400 mg L−1 and 4 mL min−1 flow rate within 54 h. Biodegradation kinetic studies revealed that the phenol biodegradation rate and biodegradation rate constant were dependent on the influent flow rate. A relatively higher rate of biodegradation (64.20 mg g−1 h−1) was found at a flow rate of 8 mL min−1, indicating rapid phenol removal in the PBR. Up to six successive batches (phenol removal >94%) were successfully applied in the PBR using an initial phenol concentration of 400–2400 mg L−1 at a flow rate of 4 mL min−1 indicating the reusability of the PBR system. The SCB-immobilized C. tropicalis could be employed as a cost-effective packing material for removal of high strength phenolic compounds in real scale PBR.

Hydrodynamics and Reaction Performances of Multiphase Reactors for Marine Applications – A Review

AbstractHydrodynamics and (catalytic & non-catalytic) reaction [high-pressure hydrodesulfurization; Fischer-Tropsch synthesis; CO2-monoethanolamine (MEA) absorption; simultaneous CO2and H2S absorption in MEA; CO2thermal desorption, enzymatic CO2hydration] performances of trickle-bed and packed-bed column reactors subjected to static inclination, rolling (symmetrical/asymmetrical externally-generated reactor oscillations) and heaving motions were analyzed via detailed dynamic 3-D models which couple the macroscopic volume-averaged momentum, mass, energy and species balance equations in the liquid/gas phases with diffusion/chemical reaction inside the catalyst particles, enzyme washcoat or liquid film near the gas-liquid interface. Axial symmetry breakdown once the packed bed systems become inclined inflicts noticeable reductions of the reactor (or scrubber) performances. Only the performance of Fischer-Tropsch synthesis in the presence of water-gas shift reaction increases slightly with the increase of trickle-bed reactor inclination because of facile uptake of reactants in the key reactions from the gas phase while a fraction of valuable CO can be forwarded in water gas-shift reaction. For most of the reactions examined, the reactor performance is negatively impacted in asymmetric oscillating multiphase reactors with Fischer-Tropsch synthesis as an exception owing to the presence of water-gas shift reaction the performance of which is slightly improved. This performance deterioration/enhancement is maximal for the reactor moving between vertical and an inclined position when the time-dependent performance waves develop around the steady-state solution of the mid-inclination angle. The oscillatory reactor performance moves towards the steady-state solution of the vertical state when the asymmetry between the two inclined positions dwindles. Symmetric oscillating and heaving trickle-bed and packed-bed column reactors generate an oscillatory performance around the steady-state solution of vertical state which is affected by the amplitude and period of the angular and heaving motions of the vessel.

Adsorption of cadmium ions by cucumber peel in continuous mode

The present work aims at employment of cucumber peel for adsorption of cadmium in packed-bed column reactor in an attempt to testify the efficiency of this sorbent for treating huge volume of wastewater needed for practical purpose. The study was performed with dried and powdered cucumber peel packed in a glass column reactor with influent metal solution being pumped in upflow mode using peristaltic pump at pH 5.0. Different design parameters of adsorption in continuous mode were evaluated, and experiments were performed at varied flow rates (15, 18 and 20 mL min−1), bed heights (5.0, 6.5 and 8.0 cm) and influent concentrations (50 and 100 mg L−1). Results illustrated delayed breakthrough, and higher percentage removal of cadmium were associated with lowest flow rate, highest bed height and lower influent concentration. Experimental outcome further revealed percentage removal of 78.03% at saturation with adsorption capacity of 107.76 mg g−1 at 50 mg L−1 influent concentration, 20 mL min−1 flow rate and 8.0 cm bed height. Evaluation of experimental data with different kinetic models established pertinence of Thomas model and Yoon–Nelson model in defining adsorption pattern in continuous mode. Elution of adsorbed cadmium from packed bed was executed using 0.1 M HCl which efficiently recovered more than 94% of the loaded metal in three consecutive cycles. The work has conveniently established the prospect of cucumber peel as a cheap biological sorbent for treating large volume of cadmium contaminated water.

Enzymatic CO2 capture in countercurrent packed-bed column reactors with high performance random packings

Packed-bed columns with immobilized human carbonic anhydrase II (hCA II) enzyme on fourth generation random packings offer an attractive way to implement CO2 capture because of low pressure drop, high capacities and extremely large and uniform open area in every ring orientation. Enzyme-based CO2 removal performance of countercurrent packed-bed column reactors was analyzed by means of a dynamic 3D model which links the macroscopic volume-averaged continuity, momentum and species balance equations in the liquid and gas phases with simultaneous diffusion and chemical reaction at the enzyme washcoat/liquid film scale level. The results reveal that this low-cost, green, and environmentally friendly technology could be an interesting option to CO2 removal. The performance of packed-bed column reactors with immobilized hCA II enzyme on fourth generation random packings can be enhanced by diminishing the washcoat thickness, increasing the inlet buffer concentration and pKa constant and increasing the liquid velocity conserving a low pressure drop level. Also, operation with extra hCA II loadings allows to obtain higher CO2 conversion and avoids the deterioration of the CO2 hydration rate in long-term operation attributable to the decrease of hCA II enzyme activity.

Production, purification and immobilization of pectinase from Aspergillus ibericus onto functionalized nanoporous activated carbon (FNAC) and its application on treatment of pectin containing wastewater

The fungal strain Aspergillus ibericus was isolated from food waste for the production of pectinase. In this study response surface methodology (RSM) was employed to determine optimum conditions for the production of pectinase from citrus pectin. The optimum conditions for the production of pectinase were found to be pH, 4.0; temperature, 40°C; incubation time, 120h and substrate concentration (Citrus Pectin), 2% (w/v). The maximum activity of pectinase at optimum conditions was found to be 69.9UmL−1. The purification by DEAE-Cellulose increased the specific activity of pectinase by about 10.1 fold from 64 to 650Umg−1 protein. The molecular weight of the purified pectinase was found to be 41kDa and 43kDa. The purified pectinase was immobilized onto functionalized nanoporous activated carbon (FNAC), the maximum immobilization capacity of pectinase onto FNAC was found to be 3360Ug−1 at optimum immobilization conditions; time, 150min; pH, 5.0; temperature, 35°C and initial concentration of pectinase, 52×103U (80mg)L−1. The immobilized pectinase showed better thermal and storage stability than free pectinase. The immobilization of pectinase onto FNAC obeyed the Freundlich isotherm model. The immobilization of pectinase onto FNAC was confirmed by FT-IR, XRD, TGA, DSC and SEM analyses. The pectinase immobilized FNAC packed bed column reactor was used for the treatment of pectin containing wastewater under continuous mode. The maximum treatment efficiency for citrus pectin in synthetic wastewater was observed to be 82% at operating conditions: Hydraulic retention time, 180min; pH, 5.0 and citrus pectin concentration 1% (w/v). Further, the citrus processing industrial wastewater was treated in pectinase immobilized FNAC packed bed column reactor and the system showed 94% of pectin treatment. The treatment of pectin in wastewater obeyed pseudo second order rate kinetic treatment model. The treatment of pectin in wastewater was confirmed by UV–vis spectroscopy and FT-IR spectrophotometer analyses.

Packed-bed column biosorption of chromium(VI) and nickel(II) onto Fenton modified Hydrilla verticillata dried biomass

The present study represents the first attempt to investigate the biosorption potential of Fenton modified Hydrilla verticillata dried biomass (FMB) in removing chromium(VI) and nickel(II) ions from wastewater using up-flow packed-bed column reactor. Effects of different packed-bed column parameters such as bed height, flow rate, influent metal ion concentration and particle size were examined. The outcome of the column experiments illustrated that highest bed height (25cm); lowest flow rate (10mLmin−1), lowest influent metal concentration (5mgL−1) and smallest particle size range (0.25–0.50mm) are favourable for biosorption. The maximum biosorption capacity of FMB for chromium(VI) and nickel(II) removal were estimated to be 89.32 and 87.18mgg−1 respectively. The breakthrough curves were analyzed using Bed Depth Service Time (BDST) and Thomas models. The experimental results obtained agree to both the models. Column regeneration experiments were also carried out using 0.1M HNO3. Results revealed good reusability of FMB during ten cycles of sorption and desorption. Performance of FMB-packed column in treating secondary effluent was also tested under identical experimental conditions. Results demonstrated significant reduction in chromium(VI) and nickel(II) ions concentration after the biosorption process.