Phytoremediation of Composite Industrial Effluent using Sacred Lotus ( Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn): A Lab-Scale Experimental Investigation

Arwa A. AL-Huqail, Piyush Kumar, Ebrahem M. Eid, Mostafa A. Taher, Pankaj Kumar, Bashir Adelodun, Željko Andabaka, Boro Mioč, Valentino Držaić, Archana Bachheti, Jogendra Singh, Vinod Kumar and Ivan Širić
Additional contact information
Arwa A. AL-Huqail: Department of Biology, College of Science, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, P.O. Box 84428, Riyadh 11671, Saudi Arabia
Piyush Kumar: Agro-Ecology and Pollution Research Laboratory, Department of Zoology and Environmental Science, Gurukula Kangri (Deemed to be University), Haridwar 249404, Uttarakhand, India
Ebrahem M. Eid: Biology Department, College of Science, King Khalid University, Abha 61321, Saudi Arabia
Mostafa A. Taher: Biology Department, Faculty of Science and Arts, King Khalid University, Mohail Assir 61321, Saudi Arabia
Pankaj Kumar: Agro-Ecology and Pollution Research Laboratory, Department of Zoology and Environmental Science, Gurukula Kangri (Deemed to be University), Haridwar 249404, Uttarakhand, India
Bashir Adelodun: Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, University of Ilorin, Ilorin PMB 1515, Nigeria
Željko Andabaka: University of Zagreb, Faculty of Agriculture, Svetosimunska 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Boro Mioč: University of Zagreb, Faculty of Agriculture, Svetosimunska 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Valentino Držaić: University of Zagreb, Faculty of Agriculture, Svetosimunska 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Archana Bachheti: Department of Environment Science, Graphic Era (Deemed to be University), Dehradun 248002, Uttarakhand, India
Jogendra Singh: Agro-Ecology and Pollution Research Laboratory, Department of Zoology and Environmental Science, Gurukula Kangri (Deemed to be University), Haridwar 249404, Uttarakhand, India
Vinod Kumar: Agro-Ecology and Pollution Research Laboratory, Department of Zoology and Environmental Science, Gurukula Kangri (Deemed to be University), Haridwar 249404, Uttarakhand, India
Ivan Širić: University of Zagreb, Faculty of Agriculture, Svetosimunska 25, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 15, 1-13

Abstract: This study investigates the phytoremediation of composite industrial effluent (CIE) released from multiple industries within the SIIDCUL cluster, Haridwar, India, using the sacred lotus ( Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn) plant. Batch-mode phytoremediation experiments were conducted using three selected concentrations (0%: borewell water as control, 50%, and 100%) of CIE for 45 days. Results show that the N. nucifera plant significantly reduced loads of physicochemical and heavy metal pollutants of CIE. In particular, the maximal removal of total dissolved solids (TDS: 89.56%), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD: 78.20%), chemical oxygen demand (COD: 79.41%), total Kjeldahl’s nitrogen (TKN: 86.48%), phosphorus (P: 76.37%), cadmium (Cd: 70.37%), copper (Cu: 85.82%), chromium (Cr: 68.61%), iron (Fe: 72.86%), lead (Pb: 76.92%), and zinc (Zn: 74.51%) pollutants was noted in the 50% CIE concentration treatment. Heavy metal bioaccumulation and translocation factor values (>1) for root and leaf parts show that the N. nucifera plant was a hyperaccumulator. However, the contents of heavy metals were higher in the root than the leaf part of the N. nucifera plant. Moreover, the selected plant growth attributes such as fresh plant biomass (760.70 ± 8.77 g/plant; without flowers), chlorophyll content (4.30 ± 0.22 mg/g fwt.), plant height (154.05 ± 4.55 cm), root length (70.35 ± 2.42 cm), leaf spread (41.58 ± 0.26 cm), number of leaves (10.00 ± 1.00 per plant), and number of flowers (16.00 ± 2.00) were also maximal in the 50% CIE concentration. This study provides a sustainable approach towards the effective biotreatment of noxious mixed effluent using plant-based green technology.

Keywords: effluent management; environmental pollution; heavy metals; industrial wastes; Nelumbo nucifera; phytoremediation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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