Study on removal potential of Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn from four plants under hydroponic conditions
Description
Four plants were selected for formal experiments: Iris sibirica L., Hydrocotyle vulgaris L., Alternanthera philoxeroides (Mart.) Griseb. and Sedum aizoon L. The tolerance, enrichment and migration ability of these four plants for copper, nickel, lead and zinc were investigated. S. aizoon and H. vulgaris were Cu hyperaccumulators, and all the plants were Ni hyperaccumulators. When the copper concentration was 200 mg/L, I. sibirica had the highest removal rate for copper in water (91.44%). The A. philoxeroides removal rate remained above 69% at each Ni concentration, which was much greater than that of the other plants. When the lead concentration was 200 mg/L, S. aizoon had the highest removal rate for lead in water (98.84%). The H. vulgaris and S. aizoon removal rates were stable at the four Zn concentrations, all above 89%. Therefore, these plants can be used in appropriate situations to design ecofriendly restoration of wastewater containing harmful heavy metals.