Kaolin showed as a very perspective carrier for the enzyme immobilization and it was used for the adsorption of horseradish peroxidase (HRP). The effects of the enzyme concentration and pH on the immobilization efficiency were studied in the reaction with pyrogallol and anthraquinone dye C.I. Acid Violet 109 (AV 109). In addition, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and analysis by Brunauer-Emmett-Teller were performed for kaolin, thermally activated kaolin and the immobilized enzyme. It has been shown that 0.1 IU of HRP-kaolin decolorized 87 % of dye solution, under the optimal conditions (pH 5.0, temperature 24 °C, dye concentration 40 mg/L and 0.2 mM of H2O2) within 40 min. The immobilized HRP decolorization follows the Ping Pong Bi-Bi mechanism with dead-end inhibition by the dye. The biocatalyst retained 35 ± 0.9 % of the initial activity after seven cycles of reuse in the decolorization reaction of AV 109 under optimal conditions in a batch reactor. The obtained kinetic parameters and reusability study confirmed improvement in performances of k-HRP compared to free, indicating that k-HRP has a great potential for environmental purposes.
Keywords: Adsorption; Horseradish peroxidase; Kaolin; Kinetic parameters; Wastewater treatment.