Biosorption of heavy metals on Aspergillus niger: Effect of pretreatment

The effect of pretreatment of Aspergillus niger biomass on biosorption of lead, cadmium, copper and nickel was studied. Pretreatment of live A. niger biomass using sodium hydroxide, formaldehyde, dimethyl sulphoxide and detergent resulted in significant improvements in biosorption of lead, cadmium and copper in comparison with live A. niger cells. Pretreatment of A. niger reduced biosorption of nickel as compared to live cells.