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Phosphorus Removal from Static Sewage Effluent Using Duckweed¹

ABSTRACT

Dry weights of a mixed population of duckweed (Lemna gibba L. and Lemna minor L.) grown for 2 weeks in 12 liters of 6, 12, and 25% concentrations of secondary treated sewage effluent were 16, 23, and 31% higher, respectively, than plants grown in pond water. Concentrations of sewage effluent > 25% did not increase dry weight production. A maximum yield of 28 g dry weight/m² was estimated for 7 days beginning with the second week of an 8-week period by removing weekly one-half of the duckweed from containers filled with 760 liters of 100% sewage effluent held under static conditions. Yield dropped to 4.6 g/m² during the last 7 days of the 8-week growing period. A 97% decrease in orthophosphate phosphorus (P) in the sewage effluent occurred during this time. Phosphorus content of duckweed was directly related to the P content in the sewage effluent up to a concentration of 2.1 µg/ml. Crude protein content of duckweed tissue removed from solutions containing 50 and 100% sewage effluent was almost three times that of plants grown in the pond water. Duckweed harvested 1 week after being planted in the containers filled with 100% sewage effluent under static conditions contained almost four times the crude protein as compared to plants harvested at the end of the 8-week growing period.

Key Words: floating aquatic macrophytes • pollution • waste water renovation • nitrogen • waterhyacinth

¹ Contribution of the University of Florida Agricultural Research Center at Fort Lauderdale. Agricultural Research Service, Southern Region, Florida Area, USDA; U. S. Army Corps of Engineers; and the Central and Southern Florida Flood Control District, cooperating. Supported in part by the Florida Department of Natural Resources, Bureau of Aquatic Plant Control. Published as Journal Series No. 5690 of the Florida Agric. Exp. Sta.

² Assistant Professor (Assistant Agronomist) and Acting Center Director; and Biologist, Univ. of Florida Agric. Res. Center, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33314.

Received for publication November 19, 1974.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				S. Korner, J. E. Vermaat, and S. Veenstra The Capacity of Duckweed to Treat Wastewater: Ecological Considerations for a Sound Design J. Environ. Qual., September 1, 2003; 32(5): 1583 - 1590. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]