ADSORPTION OF URANIUM FROM SEA-WATER BY BIOLOGICAL SUBSTANCES - STUDIES ON THE ACCUMULATION OF HEAVY-METAL ELEMENTS IN BIOLOGICAL-SYSTEMS .8.

The adsorption of uranium from sea water by various natural substances or various biological compounds was investigated. (1) It was recognized that some natural substances, Chlorella dry cells and orange peel adsorb a great quantity of uranium from sea water. (2) The experiment was carried out to screen biological compounds which have the ability to adsorb a large amount of uranium from sea water. As the result, we found that some natural high polymers, chitin, chitosan, cellulose and starch cannot adsorb uranium from sea water, while others, phosphorylated polysaccharides (chitin phosphate, chitosan phosphate and cellulose phosphate) and acid polysaccharides (alginic acid and pectic acid) adsorb large amounts. (3) The adsorption of uranium by chitin phosphate was rapid during the first 3 hours. (4) It was observed that chitosan phosphate can recover uranium (2.6 µg/g adsorbent) from natural sea water. These results show that some biological substances are potentially useful for the recovery of uranium from sea water. © 1979, Japan Society for Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Agrochemistry. All rights reserved.