Study on EDTA-assisted phytoremediation of heavy metal contaminated soil by Portulaca oleracea

The removal of heavy metal from the soil is necessary in order to protect the environment. Phytoremediation is a process that uses plants to remove the pollutant and helps in the rehabilitation of damaged sites. In different circumstances, along with phytoremediation, chelating chemicals such as ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) are used to enhance the extraction of heavy metals from soil. Experiments were conducted to evaluate the potential role of Portulaca oleracea in the removal of heavy metals from contaminated soil, and to evaluate the effectiveness of EDTA on the removal of heavy metals by Portulaca oleracea. The results revealed that Portulaca oleracea accumulated 126.11 mg/kg of cadmium and 146.22 mg/kg of copper. Translocation factor (TF) for lead, cadmium, chromium, and copper was < 1, and bioconcentration factor (BCF) for cadmium, lead, chromium, and cooper was 4.254, 6.223, 4.385 and 10.97, respectively. After treatment with 0.1 mg/kg of EDTA, the accumulation of cadmium was 187.8 mg/kg, and the accumulation of copper was 196.2 mg/kg. TF for lead, cadmium, chromium, and cooper was > 1 and BCF for lead was 16.19, cadmium 10.75, chromium 8.141 and cooper 12.37. The accumulation of cadmium and lead after treatment with 0.3 mg/kg of EDTA was 222.49 mg/kg and 181.3 mg/kg, respectively. TF for lead, cadmium, chromium, and cooper was > 1 and BCF for lead was 16.34, cadmium 11.53, chromium 8.647 and cooper 7.005. Therefore, the results showed that 0.1 mg/kg of ETDA was the optimal dose for enhanced accumulation of heavy metals.