Remediation Technology for Boron and Fluoride Contaminated Sediments Using Green Plants

Abstract

Phytoremediation is the direct application of green plants and their associated micro-organism to stabilize or absorb contaminants from soils, sludge, sediments, surface water, or groundwater. Boron and fluoride were listed to the soil standards a few years ago in Japan; however, few researches have been reported about phytoremediation on the above elements. In this paper, the authors report the experimental results of accumulation and tolerance ability of green plants focusing on the fluoride and boron contamination. In the pot laboratory tests, the growth rate of Chinese cabbage was not affected by low fluoride concentration (<15 mg/L) or low boron concentration (<5 mg/L). In the hydroponics tests, fluoride content in both stems+leaves and roots increased 3–10 times higher than control. Fluoride is easy to be concentrated in the roots. Boron content in both stems+leaves and roots increased 1.2–1.5 times higher than control. Boron is easy to be concentrated in the upper portion. Especially, Phytolacca Americana, Ambrosia trifida L., and Commelina communis can accumulate boron with higher efficiency. The boron content in soil was 480–550 mg/kg, and the boron content in these grasses was 2–3 times higher than that in soil. These results show they can accumulate boron and fluoride, and phytoremediation can be adopted for relatively lower contamination.

Accumulation of Fluoride by Plants: Potential for Phytoremediation

“…There is not much information available on phytoremediation of F. Studies have been done on removal of F ions from industrial wastes water plants around Cairo . Similarly, Boron and F contaminated sediments were remediated from medium using Chinese cabbage . Wang‐Cahill demonstrated the ability of deciduous trees to reduce F contamination.…”

Selection of Highly Productive Genotypes of Sugar Sorghum (Sorghum Bicolor L) for Further Use in Phytoremediation of Soils From Heavy Metals

“…Для этой цели можно использовать различные растения с высокой металл -аккумулирующей способностью [4]. Растения -аккумуляторы должны иметь большую биомассу, высокую скорость роста, глубоко разрастающуюся корневую систему, устойчивость к частым укосам и к неблагоприятным факторам [5].…”

Boron tolerance and accumulation potential of four salt-tolerant plant species

“…In addition to B tolerance, some plant species have been reported to accumulate B efficiently. For example, Phytolacca americana , Ambrosia trifida L., and Commelina communis were reported to grow in the soil with 480–550 mg B/kg and obtain tissue B concentrations 2–3 folds greater than the soil 16 . High B-accumulation capacity was also recorded in Poplar sp., the leaves of which were observed to accumulate up to 845 mg B/kg dry weight 17 .…”