Diethylketone and Cd pilot-scale biosorption by a biofilm supported on vermiculite

The pilot-scale assays conducted with a joint bacteria-clay system—Streptococcus equisimilis (S. equisimilis) biofilm supported on vermiculite—were conducted in a close loop reactor aiming the decontamination of large volumes of binary aqueous solutions containing diethylketone and Cd²⁺. The joint system employed proved to be able to simultaneously biodegrade diethylketone and biosorb Cd²⁺: the removal (biodegradation and/or biosorption) percentage and the uptake increase through time, even with the replacement of the initial solution by new solutions.