Publisher's Synopsis
Metals can be a combination of valuable and dangerous materials, and with few exceptions are not found naturally as pure elements. Millions of pounds are consumed by industry each year, in the form of processing effluents which, without treatment, would pollute rivers, seas and land with further serious economic as well as health and environmental consequences.;This work introduces new techniques for immobilizing ions by employing naturally occurring substances as alternatives to ion exchange resins. Experts in the field explore the use of economically viable and sound biological routes for metal recovery and waste decontamination, applying biological waste products in simple low-energy-consuming processes which bind metals such as copper, lead, mercury and uranium. In addition such processes can also be used to recover precious metals such as gold. The book focuses on these rapidly-developing routes as alternatives to existing processes, gathering together important pioneering work from renowned bio-technologists, chemical engineers and chemists who present all the current developments.
