Heavy metals bioremediation by shells dust and chitosan derived from Belamya javanica Snail, an Eco-friendly biosorbent

The aim of this study is to utilize the shells dust of Belamya javanica snail (BSD) and produce chitosan from the same shells, then evaluate the ability of the shells dust and chitosan to remove heavy metals Cu²⁺, Cd²⁺, and Pb²⁺ from aquatic systems. Chitosan produced were characterized based on the FTIR spectra, the degree of deacetylation (DD), pH, water, and ash content. The adsorption capacity of chitosan and shells dust was evaluated by using it as a package in 150mm high, 17.5mm internal diameter columns. The heavy metals used were prepared at approximately 10mg/L using primary standards, then passed through the columns for 30 minutes. The results indicated that chitosan and BSD had shown the potential to remove copper, cadmium, and lead with adsorption percentage up to 95%, in which was also at the second elution The results obtained from the experiment were that chitosan and the BSD produced could be used as an efficient and environmental friendly biosorbent for copper, cadmium, and lead from aqueous solution.