Removal of organic matter in floating treatment wetland

Abstract

Organic matter is considered one of the main sources of water pollution caused by the discharge of wastewater of different categories directly into rivers. The increased content of organic matter serves as a source of food for water microorganisms and significantly lowers dissolved oxygen of the recipient. Floating treatment wetlands (FTW) are an innovative green technology that removes excess organic matter from water. This paper shows the effectiveness of floating treatment wetlands in removing organic matter from the water of a polluted urban river. Cells with floating islands had BOD reduced by 84-91%, COD in the range of 57-65% and TOC by 16-20%. The highest efficiency in COD and TOC reduction was achieved in Cell I where P. australis was planted, and BOD in Cell II where C. indica was planted. The results of these studies showed that after 6 days of treatment of polluted water, a high reduction of BOD and COD was achieved, as well as a satisfactory reduction of TOC concentration.