South African Journal of Chemical Engineering (Apr 2024)
Applications of constructed wetlands in removing emerging micropollutants from wastewater: Occurrence, public health concerns, and removal performances – a review
Abstract
Emerging micropollutants (EMPs)—which include endocrine disruptors, pharmaceuticals, personal care products, pesticides, and industrial chemicals—have recently received global attention due to their detection in the environment at trace levels and being labeled as a first-priority environmental and public health concern. EMPs are often identified by their nature of toxicity, bioaccumulation potential, and persistence, despite low concentrations. Their prevalence in the aquatic environment is closely linked to their difficulty being removed using conventional water and wastewater treatment techniques. Constructed wetlands (CWs) have drawn more interest in this field in recent years, largely because of their affordability, ease of use and upkeep, and environmental friendliness. However, only a small number of researchers have examined and compiled the body of knowledge regarding the use of CWs to remove endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and other micropollutants from various sources. Previously reviewed articles were not focused on the comparative performance of various types of CWs and their hybrid systems to remove EDCs from various wastewaters. Therefore, the applications and suitability of different types of CWs and their integrated systems for removing a wide range of emerging micropollutants from contaminated environments (water and wastewater) were reviewed. The findings from the review confirmed that integrating CWs with other novel technologies, such as membrane bioreactors (MBR), electrochemical oxidation, and microbial fuel cells (MFCs), can maximize the specific advantages of constructed wetland systems in terms of emerging micropollutant removal.
