Assessment of the phytoremediative potential of water spinach (Ipomea aquatica Forsk.) in the removal of lead from hydroponic systems

Date

4-2013

Degree

Bachelor of Science in Chemistry

College

College of Arts and Sciences (CAS)

Adviser/Committee Chair

Pauline Angelic T. Roxas

Restrictions

Restricted: Not available to the general public. Access is available only after consultation with author/thesis adviser and only to those bound by the confidentiality agreement.

Abstract

This study was conducted to assess the phytoremediative ability of water spinach (Ipomoea aquatica Forsk.) in the removal of Pb from hydroponic systems. Analysis of Pb was done using Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy. Water spinach was collected from a pond in Bay, Laguna and then transplanted and cultivated prior to the laboratory experiments. The preliminary analysis showed that the pond water has 0.0226 mg Pb/L, which served as the baseline concentration of Pb for the succeeding experiments. Water spinach plants were exposed to different Pb concentrations for 48 hours and the Pb working concentration where maximum absorption of Pb by the water spinach occurred without physical effects was found to be 15 mg Pb/L. Solutions containing 15 mg Pb/L were prepared and in each solution, water spinach plants were immersed and harvested at different time intervals and analyzed for Pb content. Results showed that the highest absorptive capacity of water spinach for Pb, which is 444 mg Pb/kg plant, occurred at 15 mg Pb/L solution after 8 days. Water spinach was found to be a good accumulator of Pb, a metal excluder and has promising application in phytoremediation, specifically rhizofiltration, as indicated by the calculated BCF and TF. With these data and results at hand, large scale application of water spinach in the removal of Pb from hydroponic systems can be performed.

Language

English

Location

UPLB Main Library Special Collections Section (USCS)

Call Number

LG 993.5 2013 C42 /C36

Document Type

Thesis

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