Phytoremediation of Heavy-Metals-Contaminated Soils: A Short-Term Trial Involving Two Willow Species from Gloucester WillowBank in the UK

Phytoremediation, as a bioremediation process in which plants are used to remove contaminants from an environment, has proved to be a practical and low-cost strategy for recovering mining-affected areas. This study aims to assess the potential for use in phytoremediation of two willow species, Salix...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inMinerals (Basel) Vol. 12; no. 5; p. 519
Main Authors Salim Lamine, Saunders, Ian
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Basel MDPI AG 01.05.2022
Subjects
Biomass
Biomass energy production
Bioremediation
Cadmium
Cleaning
Contaminants
contaminated soil
Flue gas
Heavy metals
Lead
Leaves
Metal concentrations
Metals
Phytoremediation
Plant growth
Pyrolysis
Roots
Salix
Salix dasyclados
Salix viminalis
Soil
Soil contamination
Soil pollution
Soils
Waste management
Willow
Zinc
United Kingdom > UK
United States > US
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Summary:Phytoremediation, as a bioremediation process in which plants are used to remove contaminants from an environment, has proved to be a practical and low-cost strategy for recovering mining-affected areas. This study aims to assess the potential for use in phytoremediation of two willow species, Salix viminalis and Salix dasyclados, by testing their potential for cleaning-up a range of soils with differing heavy metal concentrations: Pb (111, 141, 192 and 249 mg /kg), Zn (778.6, 1482, 2734 and 4411 mg/kg) and Cd (3.00, 5.03, 9.14 and 16.07 mg/kg). The extracted metals were preferentially translocated to the leaves with considerably higher concentrations and relative BAFs in the case of S. viminalis. The highest recorded Zn concentration of over 0.5% was found in the leaves of S. viminalis growing in soil 4. However, under the conditions of the experiments, S. dasyclados showed greater potential for use in phytoremediation, especially if coupled with use of biomass for energy production. An assessment of the suitability of willow species in this role, with regard to wider aspects involved, such as use of resultant biomass and/or waste management, revealed good potential. Willows are fast growing, grow vigorously from coppiced stumps and have extensive root systems. Therefore, their use in bioenergy production through pyrolysis or combustion, coupled with flue gas screening, is strongly advised.
ISSN:2075-163X
DOI:10.3390/min12050519