Biobased Approaches Towards Treatment and Recycling of Heavy Metals from Wastewater

Wastewater contaminated with heavy metals is often discharged into the environment, which can be a harmful threat to wildlife and humans. Conventional physicochemical treatments have existed since long ago but are cost-ineffective and environmentally unsustainable. Biobased approaches are a promising alternative for the treatment of heavy metals. Biobased technologies are able to remove metals in low concentrations. Biobased agents also have lower cost and are renewable. These properties have attracted researchers to develop biobased technologies for heavy metal removal. This chapter explores recent advances in applying biobased agents for the removal of heavy metals from wastewater. These advances involve using biomass from agricultural wastes and microbes to either sequester heavy metal ions or biotransform them into non-toxic states. This chapter will also discuss the metal uptake mechanisms involving biosorption and bioaccumulation. As demands for metal resources are increasing, advancements are being made to recycle the heavy metals recovered from wastewater into reusable raw materials. This also allows for a more sustainable approach as the biobased agent can be reused after recovering the metals.