Evaluation of Absorption of Cd, Zn, Pb, Ni, Fe, and Cu Present in Hospital Wastewater by Phytoremediation Using Vetiver Grass

Hospital effluent is one type of urban wastewater that, due to its special source, may contain different pathogens and microorganisms, various intestinal disease agents, bacteria, viruses, sycophants, and toxic substances present in hospital wastewater latex including heavy metals. In this study, efforts have been made to evaluate the absorption of Cd, Zn, Cu, Ni, Fe, and Pb present in hospital wastewater by phytoremidiation. For the purposes of this study, the vetiver grass was cultivated in 8 treatments with 4 replications based on a completely randomized design and irrigated for 75 days with various combinations of normal water and hospital wastewater. Results showed that more of the Pb, Cu, Zn, Fe, and Ni (9.243, 2.313, 2.3188, 2625.3, and 27.638 mg of dry matter, respectively) was absorbed and collected in the root while Cd (3.45 mg of dry matter ) accumulated in the soil, and only trace amounts of heavy metals accumulated in the branches and leaves. The reason for the greater accumulation of Pb, Cu, Ni, and Zn in the root rather than in the aerial parts is the high tolerance of the vetiver grass to high heavy metal concentrations in soil. Based on the results of this study, the use of vetiver may be recommended for the removal of contaminants in hospital effluents.