Duckweed does not improve the efficiency of municipal wastewater treatment in lemna system plants

摘要

This study investigated the operation of three full-scale Lemna System surface flow municipal wastewater treatment plants, built according to the Lemna Corporation design. These plants consist of two ponds, the first aerated and the second for duckweed, with a barrier grid in the latter to ensure uniform plant distribution across its area. According to designers duckweed improves the efficiency of wastewater treatment. The three treatment plants are situated in central Poland and they differ in the occurrence of duckweed, two of them, located in Rakow and Bakowiec, operate without duckweed. and the third in Falecin Stary, Lemna minor covers ca. 90% of second pond surface. The efficiency of Lemna System wastewater treatment was found not to differ between the plants with and without duckweed. The aerated pond played the main role in reduction of pollutants in the investigated Lemna Systems.