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- Effect of arsenic, lead and zinc on seed germination and plant growth in black nightshade (solanum nigrum l.) vs. clover (trifolium incarnatum l.)Publication . Marques, Ana P. G. C.; Rangel, António O. S. S.; Castro, Paula M. L.S. nigrum was found to proliferate in sediments with high levels of metal pollution. Toxicity tests were performed using seed germination, root elongation, shoot length and biomass as parameters for establishing growth inhibition of S. nigrum and T. incarnatum by arsenic, lead and zinc. All the elements had a higher inhibitory action on the ger-mination and growth of T. incarnatum – inhibition occur-ring at 3 mg element per kg of dry sand. S. nigrum presented germination and growth at higher concentrations of those elements - 7 mg Pb kg-1, 10 mg Zn kg-1 and 10 mg As kg-1. Although inhibitory concentrations for each plant were dif-ferent, increasing the elements concentration reduced seed germination, root elongation and shoot length in T. incar-natum, but not always in S. nigrum. For the latter, low con-centrations (3 mg kg-1 dry sand) of Zn and As seemed to have stimulatory effects on germination. The addition of nu-trients did not cause a significant (P < 0.05) difference in the germination of both plants, except for high metal/ metal-loid concentration in S. nigrum. Concerning growth char-acteristics, nutrient addition was only a differentiation factor for shoot length at low metal/metalloid concentrations. S. nigrum could be a promising plant to be used in further ex-periments concerning the potential of phytoremediation of metal contaminated sites, as long as an adequate planting strategy is followed.
- Evaluation of different substrates in constructed wetlands planted with Typha latifolia for the treatment of tannery wastewaterPublication . Calheiros, Cristina S. C.; Rangel, António O. S. S.; Castro, Paula M. L.
- Ecotechnologies as urban solutions for sustainable water managementPublication . Calheiros, Cristina S. C.; Monteiro, Cristina M.; Rangel, António O. S. S.; Castro, Paula M. L.
- Development of a low pressure chromatographic flow system for monitoring the biodegradation of ofloxacin and ciprofloxacinPublication . Santos, Inês C.; Mesquita, Raquel B. R.; Amorim, Catarina L.; Castro, Paula M. L.; Rangel, António O. S. S.In this work, we propose a simple low pressure chromatography method with a high throughput for monitoring the biodegradation of fluoroquinolones. Fluoroquinolones are a class of antibiotics that have been accumulating in the environment as a consequence of their release from different sources, namely hospital waste. It has been found that wastewater treatment plants are not able to completely remove this type of micro-pollutants and so, alternative solutions are necessary. Some biodegradation studies have been done but the HPLC-based methodologies used to monitor the degradation process usually require high cost instrumentation such as analytical columns and detectors. For this reason, a 1 cm monolithic column was coupled to a flow injection system and used for the simultaneous quantification of ofloxacin and ciprofloxacin with UV detection at 295 and 275 nm, respectively. LODs of 0.5 and 0.29 mg L-1 for ofloxacin and ciprofloxacin were obtained, respectively, with repeatability within the range of 2–10%. The developed method was successfully applied to monitor the biodegradation of ofloxacin and ciprofloxacin by the strain Labrys portucalensis F11. The results proved that the low pressure chromatography method is a simpler, cheaper, and faster alternative to monitor biodegradation studies.
- Evaluation of different substrates to support the growth of Typha latifolia in constructed wetlands treating tannery wastewater over long-term operationPublication . Calheiros, Cristina S. C.; Rangel, António O. S. S.; Castro, Paula M. L.The aim of this study was to investigate the performance of horizontal subsurface flow constructed wetlands planted with Typha latifolia treating tannery wastewater under long-term operation. Two expanded clay aggregates (Filtralite® MR3–8-FMR and Filtralite® NR3–8-FNR) and a fine gravel-FG were used as substrate for the constructed wetland units plus one unit with FMR was left as an unvegetated control. The systems were subject to three hydraulic loadings, 18,8 and 6cm d⁻¹, and to periods of interruption in the feed. The relationship between the substrate, plant development and removal efficiency, especially of organic matter, was investigated. Organic loadings up to 1800 kg BOD5 ha⁻¹ d⁻¹ and 3849 kg COD ha⁻¹ d⁻¹ were applied leading to mass removals of up to 652 kg BOD₅ ha⁻¹ d⁻¹ and 1869 kg COD ha⁻¹ d⁻¹, respectively. The three different substrates were adequate for the establishment of T. latifolia, although the clay aggregates allowed for higher plant propagation levels. The units with FNR and FMR achieved significantly higher COD and BOD₅ removal when compared to the FG and to the unplanted units. The systems proved to be tolerant to high organic loadings and to interruptions in feed suggesting this technology as a viable option for the biological treatment of tannery wastewater.
- Use of different types of plants for the uptake of contaminantsPublication . Calheiros, Cristina S.C.; Marques, Ana P. G. C.; Oliveira, Rui S.; Rangel, António O. S. S.; Castro, Paula M. L.
- Tratamento de Águas Residuais por meio de Fito-ETAR: Projecto implementado no Paço de CalheirosPublication . Calheiros, Cristina S. C.; Rangel, António O. S. S.; Castro, Paula M. L.
- Phytoextraction of Zn by Solanum nigrum: effect of chelating agents (EDTA and EDDS) addition and inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungiPublication . Marques, Ana P. G. C.; Oliveira, Rui S.; Rangel, António O. S. S.; Castro, Paula M. L.
- Potential of Constructed Wetland Phytotechnology for Tannery Wastewater TreatmentPublication . Calheiros, Cristina S. C.; Rangel, António O. S. S.; Castro, Paula M. L.
- Long term performance of constructed wetlands for tannery wastewater treatmentPublication . Calheiros, Cristina S. C.; Duque, Anouk F.; Moura, Alexandra; Henriques, Isabel S.; Correia, António; Rangel, António O. S. S.; Castro, Paula M. L.