Phytoremediation is a cost-effective and environment-friendly approach to remediate or clean our environment using plants by accumulating contaminants. Helianthus annuus L., commonly named sunflower is known to be a hyperaccumulator of heavy metals from the soil. This study focuses on using sunflowers for the phytoremediation of heavy metal-contaminated soil, specifically Arsenic (As), Lead (Pb), ad Mercury (Hg). The researcher collected soil samples in the months of March – April 2024 at the Catarman Sanitary Landfill located at Sitio Banihit, Catarman, Northern Samar, and were analyzed for pH, Nitrogen (N), Phosphorous (P), and Potassium (K) test using a Soil Test Kit (STK) from the Bureau of Soils and Water Management – Department of Agriculture, and detected the presence of As, Pb, and Hg using qualitative analysis. The analysis showed that the soil is slightly acidic, has low nitrogen, high phosphorus, and sufficient potassium, that is an indication of heavy metal contamination, and is good for metal uptake and accumulation in plant. The researcher planted sunflower using the collected soil samples. Leaves were extracted after one (1) month and two (2) weeks, and tested for physical properties in terms of pH, density, and solubility. Results showed that sunflower leaves extract is slightly acidic with an average pH of 6.94., density of 1.00 g/ml, and shows a polar property. The plant sample was also analyzed using Colorimetric analysis for Arsenic, Flame AAS for Lead, and Cold Vapor AAS for Mercury. Findings revealed that the concentration of these three (3) heavy metals are below the detection limit. But in small concentrations, exposure to these heavy metals still poses a great threat to living organisms. Using sunflower plants of about four (4) months of more could further be tested for possible detection of considerable amount of heavy metal uptake.
Author(s) Details:
Lyka G. Dente
Department of Chemistry, College of Science, University of Eastern Philippines, Catarman, Northern Samar, 6400, Philippines.
Flyndon Mark S. Dagalea
Department of Chemistry, College of Science, University of Eastern Philippines, Catarman, Northern Samar, 6400, Philippines and University Research Office, University of Eastern Philippines, Catarman, Northern Samar, 6400, Philippines.
Ma. Lourdes C. Alvarez
Department of Chemistry, College of Science, University of Eastern Philippines, Catarman, Northern Samar, 6400, Philippines.
Recent Global Research Developments in Sunflowers for Soil Cleanup
Yield and Quality Responses of Sunflowers to Soil CO2 Leakage from CCS Projects:
This study explored the impact of increased soil CO2 concentrations on sunflowers (Helianthus annuus), a main oil crop, using pot experiments. The results showed that:
The crude fat content of sunflowers decreased by 3.62% due to higher soil CO2.
Crude protein content and linoleic acid contents increased by 4.12% and 13.98%, respectively.
Sunflower yields remained unchanged under 1500 g/m²/day CO2 leakage.
The elevated crude protein and linoleic acid contents improved the quality of sunflower oil to some extent.
Planting sunflowers in carbon capture and storage (CCS) project areas is a feasible solution for addressing CO2 leakage [1].
Sunflower for Phytoremediation:
Sunflower (Helianthus) is widely used for phytoremediation of heavy metals such as cadmium, lead, uranium, and chromium. It can help clean up contaminated soils and water [2].
Adaptation to Arid Environments:
Sunflower is well adapted to arid and semi-arid environments due to its ability to uptake water from deep soil layers under water stress through a well-developed root system [3].
References
- Yu, M., Zhang, X. & Ma, X. Yield and quality responses of sunflowers to soil CO2 leakage from CCS projects. Int. J. Environ. Sci. Technol. 19, 6721–6728 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-021-03538-1
- Nguyen, D.T.C., Nguyen, T.T., Le, H.T.N. et al. The sunflower plant family for bioenergy, environmental remediation, nanotechnology, medicine, food and agriculture: a review. Environ Chem Lett 19, 3701–3726 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-021-01266-z
- Chen X, Zhang H, Teng A, Zhang C, Lei L, Ba Y and Wang Z (2023) Photosynthetic characteristics, yield and quality of sunflower response to deficit irrigation in a cold and arid environment. Front. Plant Sci. 14:1280347. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2023.1280347
To Read the Complete Article See Here