Hydroponic uptake and distribution of nitrobenzene in Phragmites australis: potential for phytoremediation

Phragmites australis was grown hydroponically in nutrient solutions containing nitrobenzene to examine the potential for treatment of contaminated waters through phytoremediation. The hydroponic solutions and plant tissue were sampled each day during the five day growth period and tested for nitrobenzene. Plant tissue analysis included both rhizome and shoot sections of the plant. The average half lives and disappearance rate of nitrobenzene in the nutrient solution was 1.85 days and 88.10%, respectively. The levels of nitrobenzene in rhizomes and shoots of Phragmites australis increased with higher exogenous concentrations. For the highest treatment, nitrobenzene measurements in the rhizome tissue were much higher than the plant shoots until the third day. Shoot sections initially showed elevated concentrations and then decreased. This variation is presumably due to the translocation of the target compound from the rhizomes to shoots. Our findings indicate that Phragmites australis removed nitrobenzene from the hydroponic solutions and accumulated the compound within the plant tissue. This activity makes Phragmites australis a good candidate species for the phytoremediation of nitrobenzene contaminated waters.