Book excerpt: Adsorption of Metals by Geomedia, serves as a needed resource for this topic which has received much attention during the past 15 years. The book provides an in-depth review of the field, followed by numerouschapters that document the current status of adsorption research for a variety of metals by geomedia ranging from individual minerals to sediments and soils. Adsorption mechanisms are detailed and precipitation is presented as a distinct sorption process.Virtually all factors affecting the extent of metal adsorption are examined, including the effects of selected anions, competition among metals, pH, metal concentration, loading, variable metal adsorption capacity, ionic strength, hydrogen exchange and stoichiometry, and solids concentration. A variety of adsorption models are briefly presented and some are used to extend laboratory studies to field sites. The book is comprised of a collection of papers contributed by leading investigators from Canada, France, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the US. - Includes a wide-ranging review of the status of adsorption research and a prospectus on future research - Details all known factors affecting the extent of adsorption - Covers basic adsorption equations and interrelationships - Clearly documents experimental procedures - Presents adsorption data for eleven metals and three other elements - Uses normalization to greatly reduce apparent variability among absorbents - Provides extensive literature citations and a comprehensive index