Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Cladophora Sp. Biosorption Of Metal-Contaminated Water, Rosamond R.M.S. Tshumah-Mutingwende, Fumitake Takahashi, Ewa Cukrowska, Julien Lusilao-Makiese

Applied Environmental Research

Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining (ASGM) activities employing the mercury amal-gamationtechnique have resulted in a significant drop in the quality of water from Ngwabalozi River, Zimbabwe. Mercury levels as high as 0.31 mg L-1have been reported in its waters and the low river pH (pH 3) favors proliferation of microorganisms responsible for methylmercury (a potent neurotoxin) formation. Thus, removal of mercury from contaminated systems is a priority. Therefore, the aim of this study is to develop a low-cost batch reactor for the removal of mercury from mercury contaminated acidic waters tomeet the World Health Organization (WHO) standard of 0.006 mg …