Seaweed is known for the multitude of health benefits it offers. It is used in many Asian dishes, skin regimens, and health supplements. A few health benefits include helping lower blood sugar, protecting antioxidants, fighting radiation, and supporting skin health. The rise in plant protein and vegan alternative consumption is creating a spike in demand for seaweed products. “Seaweed” is a term used to represent a countless number of marine plants found in oceans, lakes, and other bodies of water. Water pollution has been an increasing problem worldwide over the last hundred years. A population increase around the globe means an increase in trash, sewage, and industrialization. It is estimated that over 15 million tons of plastic, trash, and sewage make it to the oceans every year. This has created a negative effect on the life of all marine life, including seaweed. Seaweed is known to accumulate a large number of metals, including Magnesium (Hg) and Arsenic (Ar). With a rise in pollution comes a rise in heavy metals. The heavy metals accumulating due to trash, plastics, and sewage, unfortunately, come into contact with seaweed through the ocean waters they live in, which then is absorbed by it. Heavy metals, in high concentrations, are toxic to humans. Heavy metals can create nervous system disorders, vascular damage, and immune system dysfunction, as with other negative effects on human health. Therefore, in an attempt to obtain its health benefits, the consumption of seaweed could be a pathway for heavy metals into the human body. This project will use raw seaweed from different places in the world to extract, identify, and compare the heavy metals present. Processed seaweed will also be tested and compared to raw seaweed to determine the effectiveness of processing. Lastly, different methods will be used and tested to improve the removal of heavy metals for human consumption.

Extraction and identification of heavy metals in raw vs processed seaweed

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