Enhancement of EAPR System Using Aeration Process on the Removal of Heavy Metal (Cu and Fe) in the Wastewater and Up-Take by Vetiver Grass (<i>Vetiveira zizaniodes</i> L)

This study was aimed to determine the effect of electro-assisted and oxygen injection system to improve the effectiveness of the copper and iron removal in wastewater by phytoremediation system. The electro-assisted phytoremediation (EAPR) system was run with Vetiver grass (Vetiveira zizanioides L) as accumulator plant and 2 V of constant DC power supply using 2D cathode-pot electrode and air diffuser configuration on the aeration by air flow rate of 10 L/min. The effectiveness of phytoremediation, phyto-aeration,and phytoremediation on the wastewater treatment was compared and evaluated by measuring the decreasing of heavy metal concentration in the wastewater and accumulated inthe plant. Plant stress was monitored by the observation of phytomorphology changed and measurement chlorophyll content using UV-Vis Spectroscopy after the acetone extraction and heavy metal concentration was measured by Flame-Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (Flame-AAS). The results showed that the decreasing of Cu and Fe concentration in the wastewater as much as 86.5% and 99,3%, higher than that phyto-aeration (82.35% and 99.20%) and phytoremediation (15.0% and 56.0%). The uptake profiles of heavy metal by plant indicated the enhancement ability of electro-assisted and aeration system to the phytoremediation has different results. For example in the root part, the heavy metal absorption occurred most often as following in phytoremediation>phyto-aeration>EAPR-aeration. Contrary results show in the EAPR-aeration system that the metal concentration quiet high translocation from root to shoot part by enhancement of electro-assisted and aeration system. High chlorophyll content and chlorophyll ratio in the plant under the EAPR-aeration system shows higher tolerance of the plant to the heavy metal concentration.