Phytoremediation Potential of Hymenachne acutigluma in Removal of Nitrogen and Phosphorus from Catfish Pond Water

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2020, Volume 8, Issue 1, Pages: 448-454

J. Environ. Treat. Tech.

ISSN: 2309-1185

Journal web link: http://www.jett.dormaj.com

Phytoremediation Potential of Hymenachne

acutigluma in Removal of Nitrogen and Phosphorus

from Catfish Pond Water

Le Diem Kieu , Pham Quoc Nguyen , Hans Brix , Ngo Thuy Diem Trang

College of Resources and Environment, Dong Thap University, Vietnam

Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ole Worms Allé 1, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark

College of Environment and Natural Resources, Can Tho University, Vietnam

Received: 21/09/2019

Accepted: 03/12/2019

Published: 20/02/2020

Abstract

The study assessed the growth and nutrient uptake capacity of Hymenachne acutigluma (Steud.) Gillilland by cultivating plants in

striped catfish (Pangasianodon hypophthalmus) pond water for 42 days. The experiment simulated varying degrees of nutrient

enhancement by using fish pond effluent enriched with three levels of nitrogen (N) (2.1, 4.3 and 8.6 mmol/l) and three concentrations

levels of phosphorus (P) (0.16, 0.32 and 0.64 mmol/l) using NH

completely randomized design with four replications. Raw striped catfish pond water was served as background growth solution which

was spiked with NH NO (as a N source) and KH PO (as a P source) and was renewed weekly. Nitrogen supply significantly affected

4 3 2 4

NO and KH PO , respectively. The treatments were arranged in a

most tested parameters whereas P only affected biomass, P content and N : P ratio content and accumulation in the roots and the shoots.

H. acutigluma had significant higher growth, biomass and nutrient uptake when N concentration increased but not for the case of P

increment. H. acutigluma helped to remove 7.6-19% N and 2.1-5.2% P from total input N and P concentrations in the experimental

treatment. It indicates that Hymenachne appears to be a promising phytoremediation agent in nutrients removal from aquaculture water.

Keywords: Aquaculture water, Hymenachne acutigluma, Mass balance, Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Phytoremediation, Uptake

Introduction¹

The Mekong Delta (8 33’–10 55’N, 104 30’–106 50’E) is

growth rate which was highest at N : P ratios between 10 and

33 on a molar basis. Furthermore, Martins et al. [10] reported

that the highest biomass of Polygonum hydropiperoides was

obtained at a N : P ratio of 16 on a molar basis.

by far the most productive region for aquaculture in Viet Nam.

Striped catfish, Pangasianodon hypophthalmus, is currently the

main aquaculture species in the delta with a total production of

Hymenachne acutigluma Steud. (Poaceae) is an emergent

grass that grows abundantly in natural wetlands, irrigation

channels, and fresh waterways. This species has potential to

remove excess nutrients from domestic wastewater [11] and

aquaculture wastewater [7]. It is also commonly cultivated in

the field for fodder production [12]. H. acutigluma has also

been recognized as a potential N and P hyperaccumulator when

it grown in striped catfish pond water enriched with N and P

87,000 and 1,094,897 tonnes in 2007 and 2008, respectively,

and discharging 31,602-50,364 tonnes of nitrogen (N) and

,893-15,766 tonnes of phosphorus (P) to the environment [1].

In addition, Phan et al. [2] estimated that for every ton of catfish

produced, 6.4 Ml of water was used, releasing nutrients-rich

effluents into the receiving water bodies and causing

eutrophication [3] and long-term adverse effect on the

environment and human health [4]. Removal of nutrients from

aquaculture effluents using phytoremediation techniques is one

of the environmentally friendly methods that can be used to

improve water quality and to minimize adverse environmental

impacts from the aquaculture sector [5].

Nitrogen and phosphorus are important mineral nutrients

for plants and promote high biomass production [6, 7]. In a

review on responses of plants to N and P additions across

marine, aquatic, and terrestrial ecosystems, Elser et al. [8]

showed that simultaneously adding both nutrients gave a much

stronger response than either of them alone. However, Romero

et al. [9] reported that N level in the growth solution

significantly affected the relative growth rate and tissue

concentrations of N and P in Phragmites australis, whereas P

did not have a significant affect. They also concluded that the

N : P ratio in the growth solution significantly affected the

[7]. H. acutigluma had very high growth and biomass at the

high N concentration of 40 mg N/l in the growth solution, and

the authors suggested that the growth of H. acutigluma may be

even higher at higher N levels. However, high N concentration

can also be toxic to plants [13]. There are, to our knowledge,

no information on the effects of N and P availability on growth

and nutrient allocation of H. acutigluma. The objective of this

study was therefore to assess growth and nutrient allocation

responses of H. acutigluma to different combination levels of

N and P. The background growth solution was raw striped

catfish pond water which was spiked with ammonium nitrate

(as a N source) and potassium phosphate (as a P source). We

hypothesize that H. acutigluma grows best and has the highest

nutrient accumulation at the highest N and P concentrations

leading to a better N and P removal rate.

Corresponding Author: Ngo Thuy Diem Trang, College of Environment and Natural Resources, Can Tho University, Vietnam. Email:

ntdtrang@ctu.edu.vn (NTD. Trang); Phone: +84 (0) 909 243 703.

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2020, Volume 8, Issue 1, Pages: 448-454

concentration in the plant fractions initially and at harvest, and

the biomass production during the 42-day experiment.

Materials and methods

.1 Experimental set up

The experiment was set up in the campus of Dong Thap

.3 Water, sediment sampling and analysis

Water temperature, pH and dissolved oxygen (DO) were

University (10°25’18 - 10°25’20N, 105°38’27’ - 105°38’28E)

in Dong Thap province in the Mekong Delta of Viet Nam. The

climate of the region is influenced by the monsoon. The

average temperature during the experimental period was 32-

analyzed weekly using a portable meter (HORIBA W-2000S,

Korea). In addition, water samples were collected weekly and

analyzed for ortho-phosphate (PO

), total ammonium (TAN),

) using ion chromatography

1100 Thermo, USA), and total phosphorus (TP) and total

7°C and 22-25°C in the day and the night, respectively. The

nitrite (NO ) and nitrate (NO

(

experiment was setup under a glass roof which was sheltered

on its sides by plastic nets to prevent the incursion of insects

and rain.

Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN) following standard procedures [14].

The sediment in the pots was sampled initially and at the

end of the study. Air-dried sediment samples were analyzed for

N and P using the Kjeldahl method and the Ascorbic Acid

method, respectively [14].

A complete factorial experimental design with three

concentrations levels of N (2.1, 4.3 and 8.6 mmol/l) and three

concentrations levels of phosphorus (P) (0.16, 0.32 and 0.64

mmol/l) (Table 1) in the growth solution was setup with four

replicates giving a total number of experimental units of 3 x 3

x 4 = 36 arranged in a completely randomized design. Each

experimental unit consisted of a 50-L plastic pot (diameter 0.38

m; height 0.45 m) containing 7 kg catfish pond sediment (48%

dry weight) and 35 L of pond water. Each pot was planted with

three young shoots of H. acutigluma obtained from drainage

channels in the vicinity of the setup.

.4 Nutrients mass balance

The N and P mass balances (g/pot) were calculated based

on the total inputs and outputs of N and P in the pots. The total

inputs were the N and P contents in the initial plant biomass

and the sediment plus the amount of N and P added with the

spiked pond water weekly. The total outputs were the N and P

contents in the harvested plant biomass and the content in the

sediment at the end of the experiment plus the amount of N and

P in the water before weekly renewal.

Table 1: Concentrations of N and P (mmol/l) and the corresponding N

P ratios in the water in the experimental treatment

Treatments

Added

concentration

N : P

ratios

2.5 Statistical analyses

(

mmol/l)

All data were tested for normal distribution and variance

homogeneity (Levene’s test) and logarithmically transformed

if necessary. Two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA using

Type III sum of squares were used to identify interactive effects

of the N and P treatments on plant growth and tissue nutrients

content. Post-hoc Tukey Honestly Significant Differences

Low N; low P

Low N; intermediate P

Low N; high P

Intermediate N; low P

Intermediate N; intermediate P

Intermediate N; high P

High N; low P

High N; intermediate P

High N; high P

2.1

4.3

8.6

0.16

0.32

0.64

0.16

0.32

0.64

0.16

0.32

0.64

13.3

6.6

3.3

26.6

13.3

6.6

53.1

26.6

13.3

(

HSD) was used to identify signiﬁcant differences between

treatments at the 5% probability level. The software SPSS 22

IBM SPSS Statistics V22.0, USA) was used for all statistical

analyses.

(

Results and discussion

The pond water and sediment were collected from a

commercial striped catfish farm in Dong Thap province. The

average concentrations of N and P in the pond water were

3.1 Plant growth and biomass allocation

Nitrogen and phosphorous are essential plant nutrients and

critical determinants of plant growth and productivity. The

plants grew well in all treatments and showed no toxicity

symptoms, even at the highest nutrient concentrations.

Nitrogen significantly affected most of the measured growth

and biomass allocation parameters while P only affected shoot

and root biomass production (Table 2). Shoot height of H.

acutigluma was affected by N treatment, but the effect

depended on the P level as indicated by the significant N x P

interaction (Table 2). Both N and P treatments significantly

affected root and shoot dry biomass (p<0.05; Figure 1B; Table

2). Both root and shoot biomass increased with increasing N

levels whereas the biomass decreased with increasing P level

(Figure 1B). Shoot to root dry biomass ratio was in the range of

2.7-3.7 and was the highest at the high N level meaning that H.

acutigluma allocate more biomass to the shoot fraction at high

N levels. The biomass was the lowest at the low N : P ratio of

3.3 showing the negative effects of an unbalanced nutrient

supply (Figure 1B). Martin et al. [10] reported that Polygonum

hydropiperoides produced the highest biomass at the molar N :

P ratio of 16 and the lowest biomass at the molar N : P ratio of

2. They concluded that within the range of molar N : P ratios

between 7.8 and 11.8 the biomass production of P.

hydropiperoides were similar.

.61±0.01 and 0.017±0.005 mmol/l (n=6), respectively. The

pond water was spiked with NH NO (as N source) and

KH PO (as P source) to reach the experimental treatment N

and P concentrations in the pots (Table 1). The water in the pots

were renewed weekly throughout the 6-week experimental

period and analyzed for water quality. The water pH was in the

range of pH 6.4-7.7 and was not controlled during the

experiment.

.2 Plant biomass and nutrient allocation

Initially, the shoot and root length of the experimental

plants were measured as well as their fresh weight before

transplanting them into the pots. After 42 days, the plants were

harvested, rinsed thoroughly in deionized water, and then

fractionated into shoots (stalks, leaves, flowers) and roots to

determine the fresh and dry mass after drying at 60°C till

constant weight. The relative growth rate (RGR, g/gDW/d),

based on total plant dry weight was calculated.

The dried plant fractions were ground (<1 mm particle size)

and the concentrations of N and P in the plant fractions were

analyzed using the Kjeldahl method and the Ascorbic Acid

method, respectively [14]. The tissue concentrations of N and

P were used to estimate the amounts of N and P extracted by

the plants from the spiked pond water. The plant nutrient

accumulation (mg/plant/d) were calculated from the nutrient

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2020, Volume 8, Issue 1, Pages: 448-454

Table 2: Results of ANOVA (P-values) showing the effects of N and

P on growth, biomass partitioning and nutrient accumulating of H.

acutigluma after growth for 42 days at 9 treatment combinations of N

and P

tested, nitrogen was the main nutrient limiting the growth of H.

acutigluma.

Main Effects Interaction

N x P

Growth

Shoot height

Root length

Shoot biomass

Root biomass

RGR

0.018 0.051

0.171 0.340

0.000 0.034

0.002 0.044

0.000 0.057

0.045

0.215

0.897

0.703

0.540

Nitrogen and phosphorus concentration

N shoot concentration

N root concentration

P shoot concentration

P root concentration

N : P shoot ratio

0.000 0.542

0.000 0.118

0.306 0.002

0.000 0.001

0.000 0.005

0.000 0.000

0.779

0.149

0.425

0.853

0.086

0.026

N : P root ratio

Nitrogen and phosphorus accumulation

N shoot accumulation

N root accumulation

P shoot accumulation

P root accumulation

N : P shoot accumulation

ratio

0.000 0.062

0.000 0.072

0.000 0.938

0.670 0.403

0.783

0.868

0.524

0.811

.000 0.003

0.073

N : P root accumulation

ratio

.000 0.001

0.056

Note: P-values in bold are significant at the 0.05 probability level.

The N concentration in the roots and shoots of H.

acutigluma increased as N supply increased (p<0.05; Figure

A) regardless of the P treatment. Hence, the amount of N

accumulated in the roots and shoots increased concomitantly

p<0.05; Figure 3A) and reached the highest values (30-40

(

mg/plant/d) in the high N treatment. Thus, the current levels of

P did not affect neither the tissue N concentrations nor the N

uptake capacity of H. acutigluma [7]. Similar findings were

reported for Phragmites australis by Romero et al. [9], who

found that the concentrations of N and P in the plant tissues

increased in concert with N supply, and not P supply.

Koerselman and Meuleman [15] suggested that an N : P

ratio greater than 16 on a weight basis should indicate P

limitation, whereas an N : P ratio less than 14 should be

indicative of N limitation. In our study, only the treatment

combination of N-high and P-low had a N : P ratio of 24 on a

weight basis (i.e. 53.1 N : P molar ratio) and the rest of the

treatment combinations had N : P weight based ratios lower

than 14. Thus, overall our treatment combinations, except one,

were indicative of N limitation, and although the tissue P

concentration responded to the P levels in the water, the lowest

tissue P concentration were found in the treatment combination

N-high and P-low (Figure 2B).

The N treatment significantly affected the RGR of the

plants while the P treatment had no effect, and there the effect

of N was independent on the P-treatment as shown by the lack

of a significant interaction term between N and P (Table 2).

This is similar to the findings of Romero et al. [9], who found

that the N level in the water significantly affected the RGR of

Phragmites australis while the P level had no effect. The higher

RGRs were achieved in the high N treatments regardless of P

level and tended to decrease (although not statistically

significantly) with P level within N- treatments (Fig. 1C). The

RGR was particularly low at the low N : P ratio of 3.3 showing

the negative effects of an unbalanced nutrient supply (p<0.05;

Figure 1C). This shows that, within the concentration range

Figure 1: Mean (± 1 S.D., n=4) shoot height and root length (A),

biomass allocation (B), and relative growth rate (C) of H. acutigluma

grown for 42 days at three levels of N (2.1, 4.3 and 8.6 mmol/l) and

three levels of P (0.16, 0.32 and 0.65 mmol/l). Identical letters above

bars indicate groups of means that are not statistically significant

different at the 95% confidence level based on a Tukey HSD test.

.2 Nutrient content and accumulation

Both N and P treatments in the growth solution significantly

affected the tissue N and P concentrations (%) and the N : P

ratio except for the N concentrations in roots and shoots and the

P concentration in shoots. There were no significant interaction

terms in the ANOVA (Table 2).

The nutrient accumulation rate in the plant biomass (mg N

or P per plant per day) was calculated for each treatment from

the mean dry mass of each biomass fraction (shoot and root)

multiplied by the mean N and P concentration of that fraction

divided by the 42-day incubation time (Figure 3). The N

accumulation rate in the shoots was five-folds higher than that

in the roots (Figure 3A), because the shoot biomass production

rate of H. acutigluma was 2-4 times higher than that of the roots

(Figure 1B) and, in addition, the N concentration in the shoots

was higher than the concentration in the roots (Figure 2A).

Similarly, accumulated P in the shoots was 2-4 times higher

than that of in the roots (Figure 3B). The accumulation of N and

P in the shoots and roots’ tissues largely reflected patterns of

biomass allocation of H. acutigluma. Jiang et al. [16] also

concluded that the N and P accumulations in plant tissues of 15

emergent wetlands species were significantly positively

correlated with plant biomass. H. acutigluma produced an

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2020, Volume 8, Issue 1, Pages: 448-454

average of aboveground (i.e. the shoots) dry biomass of 40

g/plant in 42 days.

42-day experiment. Only a fraction of this, namely 0.9-5.8 g

N/pot and 0.2-0.4 g P/pot, were accumulated in the H.

acutigluma biomass. Hence, the plants contributed to remove

.6-19% N and 2.1-5.2% P from the total inputs (Table 3).

Figure 2: Tissue concentration (mean ± 1S.D., n=4) of (A) nitrogen, (B)

phosphorus and (C) the N:P concentration mass ratio in plant tissue of

H. acutigluma grown for 42 days at three levels of N (2.1, 4.3 and 8.6

mmol/l) and three levels of P (0.16, 0.32 and 0.65 mmol/l). Identical

letters above bars indicate groups of means that are not statistically

significant different at the 95% confidence level based on a Tukey HSD

test.

Figure 3: Mean nutrient accumulation rate (mean ± 1 S.D., n=4) of (A)

nitrogen, (B) phosphorus and (C) the N : P mass accumulation ratio in

plant tissue of H. acutigluma grown for 42 days at three levels of N

(2.1, 4.3 and 8.6 mmol/l) and three levels of P (0.16, 0.32 and 0.65

mmol/l). Identical letters above bars indicate groups of means that are

not statistically significant different at the 95% confidence level based

on a Tukey HSD test.

The high growth rate and biomass production in concert

with the high N and P tissue concentration at high nutrient

supply rates indicates that harvesting the shoots of H.

acutigluma may be possible way to remove N and P from

polluted water [17] thus H. acutigluma may be a candidate

Previous studies reported that N and P assimilation in plant

biomass accounted for 30% N and 39% P with Typha orientalis

[18], 76% N and 86% P with Phragmites australis [19], 11% N

and 3% P with Baumea articulata [20]. The sediment was an

important sink and accumulated 6.0-8.8% of N and 7.0-27.6%

of P from the total inputs (Table 3). It can be explained by the

accumulation of algae and the remained water in the sediment

due to weekly renewal, which made up an increment of N and

species for use as

wastewater.

a phytoremediator for aquaculture

.3 Nutrient mass balance

The N and P mass balance (g/pot) were calculated based on

the total inputs and outputs of N and P per pot (Table 3). The

total inputs were the N and P contents in the initial plant and

sediment plus the sum of N and P contents added with the

weekly renewal of the water. The total N and P inputs into each

pot during the 42-day experiment were 11.9-30.8 and 7.2-10.4

g/pot, respectively (Table 3). The total outputs were the N and

P contents in the harvested plant material and the sediment plus

the sum of the remained N and P concentrations in the water

before renewal. On average, 65-75% of N and 77-89% of P

from the total inputs N and P in the water were removed, which

is equivalent to 5.2-19.6 g N/pot and 1.0-3.6 g P/pot during the

P in the sediment. Mayo et al. [21] concluded that

denitrification and net sedimentation were the major N removal

mechanisms in a water hyacinth pond accounting for 81.9% and

13.1% of removed nitrogen, respectively. Van der Steen et al.

[22] reported that 18% of influent N was recovered by

duckweed and 8% settled in sediment whereas El-Shafai et al.

[23] found that 80% N was taken up by duckweeds (Lemna

gibba and Lemna minor), 5% was settled in sediments and 15%

N was unaccounted-for.

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2020, Volume 8, Issue 1, Pages: 448-454

Table 3: Mass balance (mean ± S.E., n=4) of N and P (g/pot) in the treatments for the 42 days experiment

Input (g/pot) Output (g/pot)

Treatment

Unaccounted for

Total

input

Water⁽¹⁾

8.06

14.36

26.96

8.06

14.36

26.96

8.06

14.36

26.96

Phosphorus

1.16

2.15

4.31

Plant⁽²⁾

Sediment⁽³⁾

Water⁽⁴⁾

Plant⁽⁵⁾

Sediment⁽⁶⁾

Total output

Nitrogen

Low

Int.

High

Low

Int.

High

Low

Int.

Low

Int.

High

0.09 ± 0.003

0.09 ± 0.004

0.09 ± 0.005

0.09 ± 0.003

0.08 ± 0.004

0.09 ± 0.003

0.09 ± 0.005

0.09 ± 0.004

3.77

11.92

2.63 ± 0.21

3.63 ± 0.07

7.31 ± 0.13

2.79 ± 0.14

3.93 ± 0.34

7.88 ± 0.67

2.78 ± 0.21

4.02 ± 0.26

7.98 ± 0.51

1.53 ± 0.14

2.31 ± 0.44

5.93 ± 0.31

1.39 ± 0.07

1.96 ± 0.31

5.66 ± 0.50

1.00 ± 0.13

1.86 ± 0.37

4.95 ± 0.17

4.48 ± 0.10

4.93 ± 0.09

5.71 ± 0.10

4.82 ± 0.17

5.16 ± 0.07

6.09 ± 0.08

4.69 ± 0.08

4.86 ± 0.09

5.95 ± 0.08

8.64 ± 0.14

10.88 ± 0.40

18.95 ± 0.22

9.00 ± 0.15

11.05 ± 0.49

19.63 ± 0.60

8.47 ± 0.25

10.74 ± 0.58

18.89 ± 0.34

3.28 ± 0.14

7.34 ± 0.39

11.87 ± 0.23

2.92 ± 0.15

7.16 ± 0.49

11.18 ± 0.60

3.45 ± 0.24

7.48 ± 0.57

11.93 ± 0.34

3.77

18.22

30.82

11.91

18.21

30.82

11.92

18.22

30.81

High

Low

Int.

High

Low

Int.

Low

Int.

High

0.0058 ± 0.0002

0.0060 ± 0.0003

0.0062 ± 0.0003

0.0056 ± 0.0002

0.0054 ± 0.0002

0.0058 ± 0.0002

0.0057 ± 0.0004

0.0057 ± 0.0003

0.0056 ± 0.0003

6.07

7.24

8.23

10.39

0.14 ± 0.02

0.17 ± 0.03

0.13 ± 0.02

0.50 ± 0.03

0.45 ± 0.06

0.34 ± 0.08

0.86 ± 0.06

0.86 ± 0.05

0.26 ± 0.03

0.35 ± 0.08

0.38 ± 0.02

0.28 ± 0.02

0.31 ± 0.04

0.42 ± 0.01

0.22 ± 0.04

0.30 ± 0.06

0.44 ± 0.03

6.69 ± 0.04

6.58 ± 0.08

6.70 ± 0.03

7.14 ± 0.06

7.27 ± 0.11

7.38 ± 0.15

8.86 ± 0.17

8.63 ± 0.29

7.09 ± 0.06

7.10 ± 0.03

7.21 ± 0.00

7.92 ± 0.04

8.03 ± 0.08

8.13 ± 0.00

9.94 ± 0.08

9.79 ± 0.08

10.12 ± 0.09

0.15 ± 0.06

0.14 ± 0.03

0.02 ± 0.00

0.31 ± 0.04

0.20 ± 0.08

0.09 ± 0.00

0.45 ± 0.08

0.60 ± 0.08

0.27 ± 0.09

High

Low

Int.

High

0.73 ± 0.05

8.94 ± 0.19

Notes: ( ) Sum of N and P content in the renewed water; ( ) N and P content in initial plant biomass; ( ) N and P content in initial sediment; ( ) the remained N and P content in the growth solution

(

sampling weekly); ( ) N and P content in the harvested plant biomass; ( ) the remained N and P content in sediment at harvest.

Journal of Environmental Treatment Techniques

2020, Volume 8, Issue 1, Pages: 448-454

For N, the unaccounted-for component in a balance system

can usually be considered as the quantity loss to the atmosphere

through denitrification whereas P as a conservative element and

all input P is theoretically countable within the growth system

partitions [18]. In the present study, 24-41% N and 0.3-5.8% P

from the total inputs were unaccounted-for (Table 3). The

amount of P unaccounted-for in our system was assumed to be

the amount of P in the sediment and the water loss during

weekly renewal and sampling. Different nutrient loading rates

and plant species were responsible for different nutrient uptake

by plants in various studies [24]. The high plant uptake

proportion was due to the rapid biomass growth and influent

quality [25]. Altering nutrient availability in the growth

solution can change productivity and potential nutrient uptake

of H. acutigluma. In general, H. acutigluma grew well and

accumulated high N and P contents in the plant tissues. The

average N and P accumulated in the harvested H. acutigluma’s

biomass were 17-64 and 38-79 times higher than in the initial

plant biomass, respectively. Therefore, harvesting biomass is a

good strategy to remove N and P from wastewater treatment

system [17].

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sesban grown on seasonally waterlogged soils as feed for cattle in

the Mekong delta, Vietnam, J. Animal Sci. Technol., 9 (2010) 34-

4. N. Piwpuan, A. Jampeetong and H. Brix, Ammonium tolerance

and toxicity of Actinoscirpus grossus - A candidate species for use

in tropical constructed wetland systems, Ecotoxicol. Environ. Saf.,

Conclusions

07 (2014) 319-328. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoenv.2014.05.032

The results of the study support the general impression that H.

acutigluma is a well-adapted species for growth in nutrient-rich

environments. The plant is N limited under the experimental

condition. After 42 days, H. acutigluma removed 7.6-19% N

and 2.1-5.2% P from the total inputs. The results indicated that

Hymenachne is an effective accumulator plant for

phytoremediation of nutrients in aquaculture water.

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wastewater, 20th Ed, American Public Health Association

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This work was financially supported by the project

B2015.20.02 which was funded from the Ministry of Education

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Author Profile:

Dr. Le Diem Kieu (born 1983,

Vietnam) got her M.Sc. in 2008

from the University of Can Tho

(Vietnam). She is permanent

lecturer at the Department of

Environmental Sciences, the

Faculty of Natural Resources

and Environment, Dong Thap

University, Vietnam. She is

specialized in ecology, plant

biology and focuses on aquatic

plant

ecophysiology

and

application for the treatment of

agricultural polluted water.

Dr. Pham Quoc Nguyen (born

978, Vietnam) got his M.Sc. in

008 from the University of Can

Tho (Vietnam). He is permanent

lecturer at the Department of

Environmental Sciences, the

Faculty of Natural Resources

and Environment, Dong Thap

University, Vietnam. He is

specialized in ecotoxicology.

Dr. Hans Brix is a professor at

the Department of Biological

Sciences, Aarhus University

(Denmark). He is specialised in

ecophysiology of wetland plants

and use of wetlands in water

pollution control, and has

published more than 300 peer

reviewed publications.

Dr. Ngo Thuy Diem Trang is

associate professor at the

Department of Environmental

Sciences, the Faculty of

Environment

Natural

Resources, Can Tho University,

Vietnam. She is specialized in

freshwater ecology, wetland

ecology

and

plant

cophysiology. Applied aspects

of the research involve the use of

natural and constructed wetlands

for the treatment of various

kinds of polluted water. She has

published more than 40 peer

reviewed publications.