Green removal of Ni(II) from synthetic and industrial wastewater using Saccharomyces cerevisiae AJ208 and phytotoxicity assessment

This study aims to minimize Ni(II) contamination after releases from two local electroplating industries using newly developed novel Ni(II) resistant S. cerevisiae AJ208 as it has priorly decontaminated Ni(II) up to 99.82 % from synthetic wastewater after second step removal treatment with 0.0033 x 10-8 g/ml of L-ascorbic acid. Ni (II) removal process with collected industrial wastewater was successfully conducted in a two-step process. Leftover Ni(II) concentrations of two samples are 0.05 mg/l and 0.017 mg/l after complete treatment and found to be well-satisfactory to the prescribed level as per the Indian and International standards of wastewater Ni(II) discharge limit. In the phytotoxicity assessment, the Ni(II) ions were used to compare and verify the root length of the brown bengal gram (Cicer arietinum) and green lentils (Vigna radiata). Findings of the phytotoxicity experiment carefully revealed the relation between exposure level and the impact of Ni(II) on the root; as the Ni (II) concentration decreases, the root length increases for both cases as well as also highlighted the eco-friendly aspect of this Ni(II) removal study towards sustainable green environment. Hence, it can be helpful for industrial Ni(II) containing wastewater treatment.