Summary
The usage of biosorbents allows separation of scandium and yttrium from each other and from Fe, Al, Ti, Si, and Ca in hydrometallurgical processing of ores and wastes. It was shown that sorption of scandium and yttrium increased with the increase in pH of solution. Initial rate of scandium sorption depended on the biomass type; however 85–98% of scandium was sorbed within 10–30 min with most biomass types tested. The presence of aluminum, iron (III), and titanium in the solution inhibited sorption of scandium and particularly yttrium. After four cycles of sorption, 98.8% of scandium and 87% of yttrium was extracted from red mud leach solution by the biomass of Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Aspergillus terreus, respectively. Selectivity of the process of scandium and yttrium recovery could be achieved during sorption and also desorption, when solubilization of sorbed associated elements was inhibited by high pH values.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Explore related subjects
Discover the latest articles, news and stories from top researchers in related subjects.Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Adamson, A.W. (1976). Physical Chemistry of Surfaces, John Willey and Sons Inc., New York.
Avakian, Z.A. (1988). In Biogeotechnology of Metals, G.I. Karavaiko et al., Eds, pp. 340–347, Center for International Projects GKNT, Moscow.
Korenevsky, A.A. and Karavaiko, G.I. (1993). Microbiology, 62, 428–431.
Korshunov, B.G., Resnik, A.M., and Semenov, S.A. (1987). Scandium, p. 183, Metallurgia, Moscow (in Russian).
Volesky, B. (1994). FEMS Microbiol. Rev., 14, 291–302.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Karavaiko, G.I., Kareva, A.S., Avakian, Z.A. et al. Biosorption of scandium and yttrium from solutions. Biotechnol Lett 18, 1291–1296 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00129957
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00129957