Polysaccharides as Effective Sorbents for Lead and Cadmium

Sorption of lead and cadmium cations from solutions of their salts on amorphous cellulose, potato starch, apple pectin, and chicory root inulin was studied. Sample preparation was performed in conditions (pH and stirring time and intensity) similar to those in the stomach and intestines of a typical person. The sorption properties of the studied polysaccharides with respect to both the individual heavy metals and their mixtures is variable. The sorption properties series are cellulose ≈ pectin < starch< inulin for Pb 2+ and cellulose < pectin < starch ≈ inulin for Cd 2+ .