Free and Ca-Alginate Beads Immobilized Horseradish Peroxidase for the Removal of Reactive Dyes: an Experimental and Modeling Study

The aim of this work was to remove the dyes Reactive Blue 221 (RB 221) and Reactive Blue 198 (RB 198) of synthetic effluent using the immobilized enzyme horseradish peroxidase (HRP) in Ca-alginate beads. Experimental parameters affecting the dye removal process such as the effect of pH, temperature, hydrogen peroxide concentration, mass capsules, and reuse were evaluated, and a numerical model of mass transfer was developed. A maximum removal of 93 and 75%, respectively, for the dyes RB 221 and RB 198, at pH 5.5 and temperature of 30 °C, concentration of hydrogen peroxide of 43.75 μM for dye RB 221 and 37.5 μM for the dye of RB 198 was obtained. A removal reaction of 180 min for RB 221 and 240 min for RB 198 was observed. Three reuse cycles of use of immobilized enzyme were achieved for both dyes. The numerical model proposed led to a good fit compared to experimental data. The HRP enzyme immobilized in Ca-alginate capsules showed a great potential for biotechnological applications, especially for the removal of reactive dyes.