A Review of Phytoremediation and Factors Affecting its Efficiency

Abstract

Due to the environmental and economic advantages, phytoremediation using aquatic macrophytes to reduce heavy metal contamination in aquatic and semiaquatic environments is becoming more widely accepted. In this review, we explore the use of aquatic macrophytes in heavy metal remediation, including the environmental and management factors affecting remediation efficiency, including plant species, metal characteristics, pH, nutrient status, temperature, initial metal concentration, microbial activity, metal speciation, and amendments, and the relative roles of metal uptake, immobilization, translocation, and accumulation in plant tissues. Optimal conditions for metal uptake, immobilization, translocation, and accumulation in plant tissues usually occur under slightly acidic to near-neutral conditions, although the optimal conditions vary for different plant species and target metals. The review compares laboratory and field-based approaches to macrophyte bioremediation. The review also compares laboratory and field-based approaches to macrophyte bioremediation, which provide controlled conditions for evaluating uptake mechanisms, kinetics, tolerance limits, and optimal treatment conditions, and more realistic information on long-term performance under complex environmental conditions, respectively, and it emphasizes that successful application of macrophyte-based phytoremediation requires integration of laboratory findings with pilot- and field-scale validation to improve remediation efficiency, sustainability, and practical application of aquatic macrophyte-based treatment systems.