This contribution describes the absorption percentage of Pb2+ and Cu2+ from water by a superabsorbent hydrogel matrix (SH) made from an anionic polysaccharide copolymerized with acrylic acid (AAc) and acrylamide (AAm). Metal-absorption tests, upon sequential pH variation, indicated that the SH has pH-sensitivity for the absorption of both metals from solution, attributed to the functional ionic groups (-COOH) present in the AAc and arabic gum (AG) segments. At the pH 5.0, the SH exhibited good absorption capacity: 73.10% for Pb-2+,Pb- 81.99% for Cu2+ in water and 63.64% for Pb2+, and 76.67% for Cu2+ in saline water with 0.1 mol kg(-1) ionic strength. A replicated 2 2 full factorial design with a central point was built to evaluate the maximum absorption capacity of the metals into the SH. It was found that both the interaction and main effects of the pH and the initial concentration of metal solution on absorption percentage of the metals were statistically significant. Surface response plots indicated that the absorption capacity of both metals into the SH may be appreciably improved by using the solutions with lower initial concentration of metal and with higher pH values. Metal-absorption results demonstrated that the SH is a convenient material for absorption of Pb2+ and Cu2+ from pure aqueous and saline aqueous environments. (C) 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.