Abstract

VELAZQUEZ DECOUD, Ana Lorena; BENITEZ, Julio César  and  FERREIRA, Francisco Paulo. Evaluation of chromium removal in water at laboratory scale USING Epipremnum aureum (Linden & André) G.S. Bunting. Rep. cient. FACEN [online]. 2025, vol.16, n.1, pp.74-82. ISSN 2222-145X.  https://doi.org/10.18004/rcfacen.2025.16.1.074.

The research was carried out using the phytoremediation method at laboratory scale, using the plant Epipremnum aureum (Pothos) plant and tap water enriched with 2 mg.L-1. of chromium, an inorganic pollutant that threatens health and the environment. The objective of this study was to evaluate the ability of this species to remove this contaminant by exposing it to the enriched water. Experimental units consisting of glass containers containing 500 mL of enriched water were used, with three Pothos specimens per container in triplicate for the experimental group and in duplicate for the control group. These units were kept for 13 days in an enclosure with artificial light at a temperature of 22 ± 2ºC and an ambient humidity of 50-70%. Tests were performed out to determine the concentration of total chromium in the enriched solution at the beginning of the experiment (day 1) and on days 5, 9 and 13, using UV-Visible Spectrophotometry. An average chromium removal of 0.340 mg.L-1 (% R=17.89) was obtained, and an accumulation of 3.03 mg.kg-1 in their system at the end of the treatment. In addition, the half-life time of chromium was estimated to be 39.16 days. Significant differences were observed in pH, EC and DO values in the enriched solution. Based on the results of this study, it is concluded that the E.aureum plant has the ability to remove chromium, and it is suggested that further research be conducted at different scales, concentrations, and methodologies, using these results as a background.

Keywords : chromium removal; phytoremediation pothos; Epipremnum aureum; bioremediation; heavy metals.

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