Phytoremediation Vetiver Wetland Data

Water Quality Characteristics and Treatment Performance
The experimental results indicate that the vetiver-based constructed wetland system significantly improved the quality of aquaculture greywater under different operational conditions. The initial greywater exhibited relatively high levels of suspended solids and organic pollutants, with turbidity reaching approximately 119 NTU and total dissolved solids (TDS) around 332 mg/L. These conditions confirm the presence of organic and particulate contamination typical of aquaculture wastewater.
Following treatment in the vetiver-planted wetland system, substantial reductions were observed in several water quality parameters. Turbidity decreased markedly across treatment configurations, with values generally reduced to approximately 5–6 NTU. This reduction indicates the effective removal of suspended particles through sedimentation and root-mediated filtration within the wetland substrate.
Similarly, total dissolved solids decreased to approximately 159–167 mg/L after treatment, suggesting that the system effectively reduced dissolved pollutants through a combination of adsorption, plant uptake, and microbial processes occurring within the rhizosphere zone. The reduction of dissolved and suspended materials demonstrates the ability of vetiver roots to enhance filtration and improve water clarity.
Nutrient concentrations also showed improvement after treatment. Nitrate concentrations were reduced to approximately 5.8–5.9 mg/L, while nitrite levels remained relatively low (approximately 0.43–0.46 mg/L), indicating stable nitrogen transformation processes within the wetland system. These reductions are likely associated with microbial nitrification and denitrification processes occurring in the plant root zone.
Furthermore, fecal coliform levels decreased substantially compared to the initial greywater conditions, suggesting that the constructed wetland environment contributes to microbial reduction through sedimentation, natural die-off, and biological competition.
Overall, the results demonstrate that the vetiver-based constructed wetland functions as an effective ecological treatment system, combining physical filtration, plant-mediated processes, and microbial degradation to improve greywater quality.