Fundamental aspects of the removal of heavy metals from aqueous streams under conditions of competition among the various species have been studied between pH 3 and 9 on Spherosil X075LS, ordered mesoporous MCM-41 and MCF silicas, as well as a MCF sample grafted with (3-aminopropyl)methoxydimethylsilane (AMPS-MCF). Cd(II), Co(II), Pb(II), or Sr(II) nitrate solutions were used to determine the percentage of metal uptake by each solid at 298 K as a function of the pH of the equilibrium solution, at an initial metal concentration of 0.0001 mol L-1 and the ionic strength being fixed with 0.01 mol L-1 NaNO3. Almost complete retention of the heavy metals on the four solid samples was observed, with the process beginning at pH values smaller than those marking the onset of "bulk" precipitation of a given metal in "free" solution. The heavy metal-uptake mechanism was regarded as hydrolysis-like phenomenon in metal-containing solid suspensions. Weak adsorption of metal species from slightly acidic and neutral solutions was a kind of nucleation step. Adding cadmium to an equimolar solution containing cobalt, lead, or strontium showed no significant effect on the retention of the main metal component. This indicated the great independence of the retention mechanisms. (C) 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.