title: Fast removal of cyanobacterial toxin microcystin-LR by a low-cytotoxic microgel-Fe(Ⅲ) complex.
abstract: Eutrophication has become a serious environmental threat throughout the world. In particular, the presence of cyanobacteria toxins, especially microcystins (MCs), has become a severe problem. Inhibition of Microcystis growth in water resources is the most effective way to reduce MCs, but it is a long-term investment. In the present study, a microgel-Fe(Ⅲ) complex was developed for the fast removal of MC-LR. The microgel-Fe(Ⅲ) characteristics and the MC-LR removal dynamics in Milli-Q water and natural water were evaluated. The removal efficiency negatively correlated to the initial MC-LR concentration and pH value (2.0-11.5), but the kinetics was not significantly influenced. The presence of natural organic matter (NOM) in water slightly reduced MC-LR removal using microgel-Fe(Ⅲ). In addition, microgel-Fe(Ⅲ) removed 98.99% of MC-LR in 12 min, while for activated carbon, it took 15-24 h to reach equilibrium. Furthermore, methanol was found to regenerate the microgel-Fe(Ⅲ) after MC-LR removal for at least five regeneration cycles. Finally, the microgel-Fe(Ⅲ) material was made into a membrane so that MCs could be removed by filtration. Therefore, microgel-Fe(Ⅲ) is an effective technology and has a great potential in removing MC-LR from drinking water resources.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Freshwater Ecology and Biotechnology, Institute of Hydrobiology, The Chinese Academy of Science, Wuhan 430072, PR China.
authors.forename: Guofei
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dai
authors.forename: Changyun
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Quan
authors.forename: Xianzheng
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Jin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Lirong
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Nanqin
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Gan
mesh_terms: D005290:Ferric Compounds; D005374:Filtration / Q000379:methods; D005782:Gels; D007700:Kinetics; D008387:Marine Toxins; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D052998:Microcystins / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D018508:Water Purification / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D005290:Ferric Compounds; D005782:Gels; D008387:Marine Toxins; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D052998:Microcystins; C057862:cyanoginosin LR