Archives
International Journal of Zoology and Applied Biosciences Research Article
Bio sorption potential of heavy metal-resistant Cedecea neteri for the efficient removal of copper (cu²?) and zinc (zn²?) from industrial wastewater
P. Raja Rajeswari, R. Rajakumar and V. Vinotha
Year : 2026 | Volume: 11 | Issue: 5 | Pages: 203-214
Received on: 30/05/2026
Revised on: 22/06/2026
Accepted on: 28/07/2026
Published on: 30/09/2026
-
P. Raja Rajeswari, R. Rajakumar and V. Vinotha( 2026).
Bio sorption potential of heavy metal-resistant Cedecea neteri for the efficient removal of copper (cu²?) and zinc (zn²?) from industrial wastewater
. International Journal of Zoology and Applied Biosciences, 11( 5), 203-214.
-
click to view the cite format
Abstract
Heavy metal contamination of industrial wastewater represents a major environmental challenge due to the persistence, toxicity, and bioaccumulative nature of metals such as copper (Cu²?) and zinc (Zn²?). The present study investigated the biosorption potential of a heavy metal-resistant bacterial isolate, Cedecea neteri (T12), for the removal of Cu²? and Zn²? from aqueous solutions under optimized experimental conditions. Fifteen bacterial isolates were recovered from industrial effluent samples collected in the Thoothukudi industrial region and screened for metal tolerance and biosorption efficiency. Among the isolates, C. neteri exhibited the highest resistance to both metals and achieved maximum removal efficiencies of 92.4 ± 3.1% for Cu²? and 88.6 ± 2.9% for Zn²? during secondary screening. Morphological, biochemical, and physiological characterization confirmed the identity and metal tolerance of the selected isolate. Batch biosorption experiments demonstrated that metal removal was significantly influenced by operational parameters, with optimum biosorption occurring at 20 mg L?¹ Cu²?, 30 mg L?¹ Zn²?, pH 6 for copper, pH 7 for zinc, and 30-35°C. Growth kinetic analysis revealed that C. neteri maintained substantial growth under moderate metal stress, although elevated metal concentrations prolonged the lag phase and reduced biomass production. Metal uptake analysis confirmed efficient accumulation of both metals, with maximum uptake of 9.32 ± 0.34 mg L?¹ for copper and 11.86 ± 0.41 mg L?¹ for zinc. Exposure to moderate metal concentrations also enhanced total cellular protein content and catalase activity, indicating activation of stress-responsive metabolic and antioxidant defense mechanisms. The findings demonstrate that Cedecea neteri possesses excellent heavy metal tolerance and biosorption capacity, highlighting its potential as an efficient, sustainable, and environmentally friendly biosorbent for the remediation of copper- and zinc-contaminated industrial wastewater. Further studies on biosorption mechanisms, adsorption isotherms, kinetics, and pilot-scale applications are recommended to facilitate its practical implementation in wastewater treatment systems.
Keywords
Cedecea neteri, Biosorption, Heavy metals, Copper, Zinc, Industrial wastewater.
-
Full Article PDF (7)
Copy Rights
© The Author(s) 2026. This article is published by International Journal of Zoology and Applied Biosciences under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (creativecommons.org), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
