Removal of Total Nitrogen and Phosphorus Using Single or Combinations of Aquatic Plants

Feng Su, Zhian Li, Yingwen Li, Lei Xu, Yongxing Li, Shiyu Li, Hongfeng Chen, Ping Zhuang and Faguo Wang
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Feng Su: South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, China
Zhian Li: South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, China
Yingwen Li: South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, China
Lei Xu: South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, China
Yongxing Li: South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, China
Shiyu Li: South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, China
Hongfeng Chen: South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, China
Ping Zhuang: South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, China
Faguo Wang: South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, China

IJERPH, 2019, vol. 16, issue 23, 1-12

Abstract: Phytoremediation is a potentially suitable technology for taking up large amounts of N and P during plant growth and the removal of plant material, thereby avoiding eutrophication. We compared the capacity of nine different aquatic plant species for removing total P (TP), total N (TN), and NH 4 + -N from raw domestic sewage wastewater collected from a living area located in Guangzhou city, China, and different concentrations of artificial wastewater. The experiments were performed in two stages, namely screening and modification. In the screening stage, four plant species were identified from the nine grown in raw domestic sewage water for 36 days. In the modification stage, the TN and TP removal ability of different plant combinations were determined in artificial wastewater at different N/P concentrations. After having been grown in monocultures for 46 days, Ipomoea aquatica (90.6% and 8.8%) and Salvinia natans (67.3% and 14.2%) obtained the highest TP removal efficiency in lightly and highly polluted wastewater, respectively. The combination of S. natans and Eleocharis plantagineiformis effectively removed TP and TN from lightly polluted water, suggesting that this combination is suitable for phytoremediation of eutrophic wastewater.

Keywords: aquatic plant; eutrophication; nitrogen; phosphate; removal; wastewater (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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