Phycoremediation of industrial wastewater using Vaucheria debaryana and Cladophora glomerata

• Published in: Environmental monitoring and assessment 2023-07, Vol.195 (7), p.825-825, Article 825
• Main Authors: Khan, Sara, Ullah, Amin, Ayaz, Tehreem, Aziz, Aamir, Aman, Komal, Habib, Mudassir, Yilmaz, Semih, Farid, Arshad, Yasmin, Humaira, Ali, Qurban
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Algae; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; atomic absorption spectrometry; Atomic absorption spectrophotometry; Bioaccumulation; bioaccumulation factor; Biochemical oxygen demand; Biological magnification; biomass; Bioremediation; Cadmium; Cadmium content; Chemical oxygen demand; Cladophora glomerata; cost effectiveness; Dissolved oxygen; Dissolved solids; Drinking water; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecology; economic sustainability; Ecotoxicology; Effluent treatment; Effluents; Electrical conductivity; Electrical resistivity; Environment; Environmental Management; Environmental monitoring; Environmental pollution; Environmental science; Experimentation; Germination; Heavy metals; Height; Industrial effluents; Industrial pollution; Industrial wastes; Industrial wastewater; Industrialization; Lead; Metal concentrations; Monitoring/Environmental Analysis; Oxygen; Oxygen requirement; Phytotoxicity; plant height; Pollution; remediation; Solid suspensions; species; Spectral analysis; Spectrophotometry; Suspended particulate matter; t-test; tap water; Total dissolved solids; Total oxygen demand; Toxicity; Triticum; Uptake; Urbanization; Vaucheria; Wastewater; Wastewater treatment; Water analysis; Water pollution; Water sampling; wet digestion method; wheat
• ISSN: 0167-6369; 1573-2959
• DOI: 10.1007/s10661-023-11357-9

Rapid urbanization and industrialization are regarded as the leading causes of environmental pollution, mainly aquatic pollution. This study was carried out to investigate the use of algal species Cladophora glomerata (CG) and Vaucheria debaryana (VD) as a cost-effective and environmentally friendly phycoremediators for composite industrial effluent. After the pot experimentation using algal species, a considerable decrease in electrical conductivity (EC: 49.10–81.46%), dissolved oxygen (DO: 3.76–8.60%), biological oxygen demand (BOD: 7.81–39.28%), chemical oxygen demand (COD: 7.81–39.28%), total suspended solids (TSS: 38.09–62.21%), and total dissolved solids (TDS: 38.09–62.21%) was observed. Before and after experimentation, the heavy metals were also quantified using atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS), and considerable reduction was observed in Cd (41.02–48.75%) and Pb (48.72–57.03%) concentrations. The Cd concentration determined in CTCG (control treatment for Cladophora glomerata containing tap water), CG (treatment pot for Cladophora glomerata containing industrial effluents), CTVD (control pot for Vaucheria debaryana containing tap water), and VD (treatment pot for Vaucheria debaryana containing industrial effluents) biomass was 0.06, 0.499, 0.035, and 0.476 mg/kg, respectively. The Pb uptake determined in CTCG, CG, CTVD, and VD was 0.32, 1.12, 0.31, and 0.49 mg/kg, respectively, using wet digestion method and ASS. The data revealed that C. glomerata has the highest bioconcentration factor for Cd (98.42%), followed by Pb (92.57%) in treatment pots containing industrial effluents (CG and VD). Furthermore, C. glomerata showed the highest bioconcentration factor for Pb (86.49%) as compared to Cd (75%) in tap water (CTCG and CTVD). The t test analysis revealed that heavy metal concentrations significantly ( p  ≤ 0.05) reduced through the phycoremediation process. The analysis found that C. glomerata removed 48.75% of Cd and 57.027% of Pb from industrial effluents. Phytotoxicity assay was also performed by cultivating Triticum sp. in order to analyze the toxicity of the untreated (control) and treated water samples. Phytotoxicity result shows that the effluent treated with both Cladophora glomerata and Vaucheria debaryana gives better wheat ( Triticum sp.) plant % germination, plant height (cm), and root height (cm). The highest plant % germination was showed by treated CTCG (90%), followed by CTVD (80%) and CG (70%) and VD (70%). The study conclu