Removal of Selected Heavy Metals from Pharmaceutical Effluent by Aloe vera L

Due to vast probable contaminations from pharmaceutical effluent, the main purposes of this study were to decrease the heavy metal toxic levels from waste water of pharmaceutical research and educational laboratories. The potential ability of A. Vera for cleaning up contaminated educational sites soil and the probable capability of this plant to phytoextract different metals (Chrome (III) and (VI) , Nickel, Copper, Lead and Cadmium) were studied. The initial concentration of heavy metals/metalloid in the plants and effluents were analyzed before introduction into the studied soil samples. After 10 days of treatment up to 60 days in every ten days, final concentration of heavy metals/metalloid in effluent samples and plants were analyzed using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy. Results showed that A. Vera transition factors for all heavy metals in treated soil were higher than one and A. Vera can up-take lead and Cadmium after 20 days (p<0.01) more than other studied metals. A highly significant, although low, positive correlation ( r= 0.52, p=0.01, n=200) was found between Lead and Cadmium and chrome (III) of the greenhouse –grown A. Vera , compared to a non-significant and much lower correlation between the three other heavy metals: Nickel, Cr(VI) and Copper . The phytoremediation of lead and Cadmium trend by this plant indicates that A.vera cultivated in the soil can be consider as a suitable hyper-accumulator by its relatively large ratio of biomass concentration of the contaminant to soil concentration. The present investigation shows that the A. Vera is effective and inexpensive adsorbent for the removal of Pb ,Cd, Ni, Cu, Cr (III) and (VI) from contaminated soil by heavy metals.