The kinetics of organic matter and nutrient removal in a pilot vertical subsurface wetland with red ferralitic soil as substrate were evaluated. The wetland (20 m(2)) was planted with Cyperus alternifolius. The domestic wastewater that was treated in the wetland had undergone a primary treatment consisting of a septic moat and a buffer tank. From the sixth week of operation, the performance of the wetland stabilized, and a significant reduction in pollutant concentration of the effluent wastewater was obtained. Also a significant increase of dissolved oxygen (5 mg/l) was obtained. The organic matter removal efficiency was greater than 85% and the nutrient removal efficiency was greater than 75% in the vertical subsurface wetland. Nitrogen and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) removal could be described by a first-order model. The kinetic constants were 3.64 and 3.27 d(-1) for BOD and for total nitrogen, respectively. Data on the removal of phosphorus were adapted to a second-order model. The kinetic constant was 0.96 (mg/l)(-1) d(-1). The results demonstrated the potential of vertical flow constructed wetlands to clean treated domestic wastewater before discharge into the environment.

In this study the main physical-chemical characteristics in the red ferralitic soil to use as substrate in subsurface wetlands was determined. The P-removal was evaluated in a short-term isotherm batch experiment and in a column percolation experiment. The acid characteristic and high content of iron minerals in the red ferralitic soil facilitated the phosphorus removal. Also the sorption isotherms at two different temperatures were obtained. The results showed that the sorption capacity increases with an increase in solution temperature from 25°C to 35°C. The experimental data was fitted to Langmuir and Freundlich models, having a better fit to the Freundlich isotherms. The maximum P-sorption capacities estimated using the Langmuir-isotherm were 0.96 -1.13 g/kg at 25 and 35 °C respectively. Moreover a column experiment was carried out at two different flows. Sequential extractions of the phosphorus saturated soil indicated that phosphorus is mainly bound with iron or aluminium minerals. The results have demonstrated a good potentiality for red ferralitic soil for phosphorus removal from urban wastewater.