The increased use and criticality of platinum asks for the development of effective low-cost strategies for metal recovery from process and waste streams. Although biotechnological processes can be applied for the valorization of diluted aqueous industrial streams, investigations considering real stream conditions (e.g., high salt levels, acidic pH, metal speciation) are lacking. This study investigated the recovery of platinum by a halophilic microbial community in the presence of increased salt concentrations (10-80 g L-1), different salt matrices (phosphate salts, sea salts and NH4Cl) and a refinery process stream. The halophiles were able to recover 79-99% of the Pt at 10-80 g L-1 salts and at pH 2.3. Transmission electron microscopy suggested a positive correlation between intracellular Pt cluster size and elevated salt concentrations. Furthermore, the halophiles recovered 46-95% of the Pt-amine complex Pt[NH3]42+ from a process stream after the addition of an alternative Pt source (K2PtCl4, 0.1-1.0 g L-1 Pt). Repeated Pt-tetraamine recovery (from an industrial process stream) was obtained after concomitant addition of fresh biomass and harvesting of Pt saturated biomass. This study demonstrates how aqueous Pt streams can be transformed into Pt rich biomass, which would be an interesting feed of a precious metals refinery.
Keywords: Acidic saline streams; Biometallurgy; Platinum precipitation; Resource recovery; Urban mining.
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