Can vertical-flow wetland systems treat high concentrated sludge from a food industry?
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Can vertical-flow wetland systems treat high concentrated sludge from a food industry? A mesocosm experiment testing three plant species
Runying Wang a,∗ , Nathalie Korboulewsky a , Pascale Prudent b , Virginie Baldy a , Gilles Bonin a a Aix-Marseille Université, Institut Méditerranéen d’Ecologie et de Paléoécologie (UMR CNRS IRD)-Diversité Fonctionnelle des Communautés Végétales, site St Jérôme, Case 421, 13397 Marseille Cedex 20, France b Aix-Marseille Université, Laboratoire Chimie Provence (UMR-CNRS) - Chimie Environnement Continental, 3 place V. Hugo, case 29, 13331 Marseille, France
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We performed a mesocosms experiment using a vertical-flow wetland system to treat liquid sludge in the Mediterranean region. Three common helophyte species, common reed (Phragmites australis Cav.), broadleaf cattail (Typha latifolia L.), and yellow flag (Iris pseudacorus L.), were planted as monoculture and irrigated with a liquid sewage sludge from a food industry, characterised by very high organic concentrations (COD > 8000 mg/L). We studied the benefits of plants by comparing unplanted to planted mesocosms. Results showed the high performance of such vertical-flow wetland systems. Removal efficiency was more than
Received 8 December 2007 Received in revised form 7 March 2008 Accepted 26 May 2008
Keywords: Vertical-flow wetland Sewage sludge Particulate organic matter Phragmites australis Typha latifolia Iris pseudacorus Phytopurification
98% for total suspended solids (TSS) and chemical oxygen demand (COD), and more than 87% for total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN). The main removal process was physical filtration by the substrate due to the high proportion of particulate elements in the sludge. Planted mesocosms were more efficient than those unplanted,