Abstract
The aim of this study is to show the influence of plants growing in aquatic systems on their water characteristics. There are many various compounds in the aquatic system, which undergo different transformations under surrounding environment. Several processes occur in the water basin: settling down, resuspension, evaporation, uptake by microorganisms, and accumulation in the structure of the aquatic plants. Under certain conditions some of these compounds may return to the water after the plants death. Three aquatic systems with different level of pollution were studied. The first aquatic system is located in comparatively clean area, the second one is in industrial area, and the third one is polluted with oily products. The common reed (Phragmites australis) is the main vegetation in these reservoirs. The water samples have been examined by physicochemical analysis to determine their characteristics: Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD5), Total Nitrogen (TN), Total Suspended Solids (TSS), Total Dissolved solids (TDS), pH, etc. The highest value of BOD5 was measured for the third sample, which is polluted with oily products. It means that the water contains variety of organic compounds due to the pollution and the decay processes. Emission Spectroscopy was used for preliminary (semi-quantitative) information of the elements presented in the water samples. Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy and UV-spectroscopy were used to determine the significant metals Fe, Mn, Mg, Ca and Si. It was established that the concentration of metals is relatively low. The plant samples preliminary cut and dry were extracted using two solvents. The extracts were analyzed consequently by Thin Layer Chromatography, Gas Chromatography and Mass Spectrometry. The results show similar hydrocarbons content but difference in their quantity. It was confirmed that the plants growing in oily polluted water accumulate to some extent the hydrocarbons.
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LAVROVA, S., KOUMANOVA, B. (2006). STUDY ON THE INFLUENCE OF VEGETATION ON THE QUALITY OF AQUATIC SYSTEMS. In: Simeonov, L., Chirila, E. (eds) Chemicals as Intentional and Accidental Global Environmental Threats. NATO Security through Science Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-5098-5_39
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-5098-5_39
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