Cyanobacterial harmful algal blooms (Cyano-HABs) in water resources involving algal species such as Microcystis aeruginosa have become a serious environmental issue due to their severely negative effects. In the present study, an adsorption-based strategy was employed to control M. aeruginosa, with industrial waste-derived Escherichia coli biomass valorized to produce polyethylenimine-modified polyacrylonitrile-E. coli biomass composite fiber (PEI-PANBF). PEI-PANBF removed approximately 80% of M. aeruginosa cells from an aqueous solution without causing any cell damage. Interestingly, the thickness of PEI-PANBF had a strong influence on the efficiency of M. aeruginosa cell removal. In addition, PEI-PANBF simultaneously removed M. aeruginosa cells and their toxic secondary metabolite, microcystin-LR, from aqueous media. Thus, our proposed fiber represents a feasible utilization method of industrial waste biomass as a biosorbent for the control of Cyano-HABs.
Keywords: Adsorption; Biosorbent; Harmful algal bloom (HAB); Microcystis aeruginosa; Modification; Waste biomass.
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