RESUMO
White rot fungi have been extensively reported to have strong adsorption capacity to heavy metal ions, whereas the knowledge of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) from the fungus has been rarely involved. In this study, the contribution characteristics of 'the in situ EPS in Phanerochaete chrysosporium to Pb immobilization were investigated. First of all, the component and amount of EPS were investigated. It was found that the main component of EPS was carbohydrates, and highest EPS amount was produced at 5 days. In the Pb2+ immobilization experiments, EPS was demonstrated to play a more important role in immobilizing Pb2+ at lower initial Pb concentration. pH increase was beneficial for EPS to immobilize Pb. Higher EPS amount increased the Pb removal efficiency at a certain extent, while the specific uptake decreased. The Pb2+ immobilization by EPS produced at 7 days was most successful.
