Mercury Removal from Mining Wastewater by Phytoaccumulation in Autochthonous Aquatic Plant Species

Franco Hernan Gomez, Maria Cristina Collivignarelli, Ahmed Mohammad Nafea Masoud, Marco Carnevale Miino (), Kelly Cristina Torres, Jesus Antonio Quintero, Sabrina Sorlini and Mentore Vaccari ()
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Franco Hernan Gomez: Department of Civil, Environmental, Architectural Engineering and Mathematics, University of Brescia, Via Branze 43, 25123 Brescia, Italy
Maria Cristina Collivignarelli: Department of Civil Engineering and Architecture, University of Pavia, Via Ferrata 3, 27100 Pavia, Italy
Ahmed Mohammad Nafea Masoud: Department of Civil, Environmental, Architectural Engineering and Mathematics, University of Brescia, Via Branze 43, 25123 Brescia, Italy
Marco Carnevale Miino: Department of Civil Engineering and Architecture, University of Pavia, Via Ferrata 3, 27100 Pavia, Italy
Kelly Cristina Torres: Research Group on Conservation and Use of Biodiversity-BioCon, Instituto Universitario de la Paz-Unipaz, km 14, vía Bucaramanga, Barrancabermeja 687033, Colombia
Jesus Antonio Quintero: Research Group on Conservation and Use of Biodiversity-BioCon, Instituto Universitario de la Paz-Unipaz, km 14, vía Bucaramanga, Barrancabermeja 687033, Colombia
Sabrina Sorlini: Department of Civil, Environmental, Architectural Engineering and Mathematics, University of Brescia, Via Branze 43, 25123 Brescia, Italy
Mentore Vaccari: Department of Civil, Environmental, Architectural Engineering and Mathematics, University of Brescia, Via Branze 43, 25123 Brescia, Italy

Clean Technol., 2023, vol. 5, issue 3, 1-13

Abstract: Mining wastewater (MWW) can contain mercury in high concentrations. In this study, four autochthonous aquatic plant species ( Eichhornia Crassipes —EC, Marsilea Quadrifolia —MQ, Ludwigia Helminthorrhiza —LH, and Lemna Minor —LM) were identified and tested for phytoaccumulation of total mercury (THg). To better study the accumulation phenomenon and macrophyte responses, this work has been divided into three phases, and pilot-scale reactors have been used to simulate real conditions. The results highlighted that, in case of 15 µg THg,fed , the bioconcentration factor (BCF) was significantly higher in EC (19.04) and LH (18.41) with respect to MQ and LM (almost six times and two times higher, respectively). EC granted the best results in terms of THg accumulation (50.90%) and lower evapotranspiration of THg phenomenon with respect to LH. A significant decrease of the BCF (from 23.45 to 21.98) and an increase of the TF (from 0.23 up to 0.73) after 42 d highlighted that a breaking-time in terms of THg accumulation was reached due to the deterioration of the roots. In terms of the kinetics of THg removal by bioaccumulation, an HLT of 69.31 d was found, which is more than the breaking-time of the EC system, proving that a periodic replacement of exhausted macrophytes is required to obtain a higher percentage of THg removal.

Keywords: mercury; mining wastewater; phytoremediation; Eichhornia Crassipes; Marsilea Quadrifolia; Ludwigia Helminthorrhiza; Lemna Minor (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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