Emerging contaminants in freshwater: a review of the phytoremediation potential of the macrophyte Typha spp. (cattail).

FRANCO, MARÍA DEL ROCÍA; OKADA, ELENA; MEDICI, SANDRA; PÉREZ, DÉBORA JESABEL

Congreso; 11th Young Environmental Scientists (YES) Meeting for SETAC. 7-9 March, On-demand. SETAC Asia-Pacific.; 2022

SETAC

Macrophytes may provide an excellent green management tool to improve water quality polluted with emerging contaminants (ECs). The removal efficiency (RE) and bioaccumulation (BA) of ECs in plants depend on the physicochemical properties of the compounds, among other factors. The goals were to review the available literature on the use of Typha spp. in the BA and RE processes of ECs and to analyze the relationship between the physicochemical properties of the ECs with the BA and RE of Typha spp. Data collection was obtained from original research articles available from Science Direct published between 2000-2022. Search criteria were performed using combinations of the following keywords: Typha OR Cattail AND Bioaccumulation OR Removal AND (the following words by separate) Pesticide, PFAs (Per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances), Pharmaceutical, PPCPs (Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products), Emerging contaminant, Solvent, Plasticizer. Data was classified according to 1) Specie: T. latifolia, T. angustifolia, T. domingensis, Typha spp.; 2) ECs class: Current-use pesticide (CUPs), PPCPs, PFAS, solvents, plasticizers; 3) Plant metrics: BA, RE; 4) Physicochemical properties of ECs: molecular mass, lipophilicity (log Kow), ionization (pKa), aqueous solubility, volatilization (Henry’s constant). Pearson correlation coefficient was estimated to measure the association between the BA and RE with the physicochemical properties of the ECs. In total, 37 articles were reviewed (T. latifolia: 18; T. angustifolia: 13; T. dominguensis: 1; Typha spp: 5), in which 81 different ECs were studied (CUPs: 9.88%; PPCPs: 46.91%; PFAs: 39.51%; solvents: 2.47%; plasticizers: 1.23%). The average RE in the aqueous solution was 57 ± 30% of the initial ECs concentration measured after 7-10 days. The RE was not related to any of the physicochemical properties of the ECs (p > 0.05). The BA in root and leaf was positively correlated to solubility (rroot = 0.53; rleaf = 0.53; p < 0.05) and negatively correlated to the log Kow (rroot = -0.59; rleaf = -0.58; p < 0.05). No relation was found between BA and the molecular mass, pKa and volatility of the ECs. (p < 0.05). These results show that Typha spp. is a promising green tool that can be used for the phytoremediation of freshwater. However, more information is needed to understand how the intrinsic properties of the ECs can affect the RE and BA in Typha.