Rhizosphere Bioremediation of Heavy Metals (Copper and Lead) by Cenchrus ciliaris

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Rhizosphere bioremediation is gaining great attention as an alternative technique for remediation of heavy metal contaminated soils. A green house study was carried out to evaluate the accumulation of heavy metals (Cu and Pb) and efficiency of grass species (Cenchrus ciliaris) for the remediation of heavy metals contaminated soil. Materials and Methods: The pot culture experiment was conducted with different concentrations of Cu (50,100,150 ppm) and Pb (20, 60,100 ppm) for 45 days. The plants were independently reaped, dried and weighed for biomass of the roots and shoots. The uptake of applied heavy metals (Pb and Cu) studied in the roots and leaf independently, to study the bioaccumulation of metals in different parts of C. ciliaris . The translocation variable was calculated to assess the proficiency of C. ciliaris for bioaccumulation of metals in roots and leaf. Results: The results demonstrated that C. ciliaris tend to accumulate more Cu and Pb metals in roots in comparison to the leaf. C. ciliaris accumulated Pb up to 97.31 ppm, whereas Cu accumulation was up to 188.3 ppm within 45 days. The present research work revealed C. ciliaris as a good accumulator of Pb and Cu productively as it effectively banished 89% of Pb and 92% of Cu individually from the contaminated soil. The bioaccumulation factor and translocation factor of C. ciliaris for Pb and Cu were figured out. Conclusion: This study concluded that rhizosphere remediation utilizing plant species C. ciliaris is compelling and effective green innovation for remediation of heavy metals from soil.