Performance of Phragmites Australis and Cyperus Papyrus in the treatment of municipal wastewater by vertical flow subsurface constructed wetlands

The use of constructed wetlands to treat municipal wastewater reduces energy consumption and therefore economic costs, as well as reduces environmental pollution. The purpose of this study was to compare the purification capacity of domestic wastewater using two species of plants sown in subsurface constructed wetlands with vertical flow built on a small scale that received municipal wastewater with primary treatment. The species used were Phragmites Australis and Cyperus Papyrus. For this purpose, a constant flow of 0.6 m³ day⁻¹ was fed from the primary lagoon to each of the two wetlands built on a pilot scale with continuous flow. Each unit was filled with granite gravel in the lower part and with silicic sand in the upper part of different granulometry, the porosity of the medium was 0.34, with a retention time of 1.12 days and a hydraulic load rate of 0.2 m day⁻¹. To analyze the purification capacity of wastewater, physical, chemical and biological parameters were monitored during three months. Samples were taken at the entrance and exit in each experimental unit. The results obtained in the experimental tests for the two species of plants, indicated that the Cyperus Papyrus presented a greater capacity of pollutants removal as biochemical oxygen demand (80.69%), chemical oxygen demand (69.87%), ammoniacal nitrogen (69.69%), total phosphorus (50%), total coliforms (98.08%) and fecal coliforms (95.61%). In the case of Phragmites Australis retains more solids. The species with greater efficiency in the treatment of municipal wastewater for this study was Cyperus Papyrus.