• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.334-343
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• 2019

A lab-scale vertical flow subsurface (VFS) wetland composed of three parallel columns with polypropylene synthetic fiber as main substrate was operated. Piggery stormwater diluted from swine excreta was fed to the wetland on the basis of three different hydraulic regimes or hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 2, 4, and 8 days with daily internal recirculation. Then, monitoring of common water quality parameters was carried out. Unexpectedly, an increase of effluent COD concentration accompanying the appearance of foams was observed during a distinct period in the wetland with HRT 2, 4, and 8 days, successively. Subsequently, a series of experiments was conducted to investigate the origin of the foams. Foams and the increase of COD concentration were found to be induced by the release of organic matter from the synthetic polypropylene fiber which was fed with piggery stormwater. Meanwhile, nitrogen removal was found to be enhanced during a period which overlapped the distinct foaming period signifying that foaming played two important functions in biological nitrogen removal. Foams which form rapidly and then burst easily could hold up and then release oxygen for nitrification. Foams which contain organic surfactants could serve as carbon sources for denitrification as well. Hence, nitrogen removal was enhanced during the foaming stage. After that, COD concentration decreased slowly to a level prior to the foaming stage, and nitrogen removal efficiency declined as well.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.54-62
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• 2018

Nutrients generated from various land uses lead to eutrophication during the influx of water, and it is necessary to apply the LID techniques to reduce nutrients from nonpoint sources in order to mitigate the occurrence of the algal bloom. This study was carried out to derive the design factors of hybrid artificial wetland (HCW) to increase the removal efficiency of nutrients. HCW system was constructed in the year 2010 for the treatment of rainfall runoffs from parking lots and roads composed of 100% impervious floors in the Cheonan campus of Kongju University. The average nutrients removal efficiency of TN and TP was 74% and 72%, respectively. Both TN and TP removal efficiencies were higher than those of free surface wetlands and subsurface flow wetlands due to activated physical and ecological mechanisms. The critical design parameters for the efficient nutrients removal in the artificial wetlands were the ratio of the surface area to the catchment area (SA/CA), land use, the rainfall runoff, and the rainfall intensity. The optimal carbon to nitrogen (C/N) ratio was estimated at 5: 1 to 10.3: 1. The results of this study can be applied to the efficient design of hybrid artificial wetlands to treat nutrients in urban runoff with high efficiency.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.168-181
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• 2024

Constructed wetlands (CWs) deliver a range of ecosystem services, including the removal of contaminants, sequestration and storage of carbon, and enhancement of biodiversity. These services are facilitated through hydrological and ecological processes such as infiltration, adsorption, water retention, and evapotranspiration by plants and microorganisms. This study investigated the correlations between microbial populations, soil physicochemical properties, and treatment efficiency in a horizontal subsurface flow constructed wetland (HSSF CW) treating runoff from roads and parking lots. The methods employed included storm event monitoring, water quality analysis, soil sampling, soil quality parameter analysis, and microbial analysis. The facility achieved its highest pollutant removal efficiencies during the warm season (>15℃), with rates ranging from 33% to 74% for TSS, COD, TN, TP, and specific heavy metals including Fe, Zn, and Cd. Meanwhile, the highest removal efficiency was 35% for TOC during the cold season (≤15℃). These high removal rates can be attributed to sedimentation, adsorption, precipitation, plant uptake, and microbial transformations within the CW. Soil analysis revealed that the soil from HSSF CW had a soil organic carbon content 3.3 times higher than that of soil collected from a nearby landscape. Stoichiometric ratios of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) in the inflow and outflow were recorded as C:N:P of 120:1.5:1 and 135.2:0.4:1, respectively, indicating an extremely low proportion of N and P compared to C, which may challenge microbial remediation efficiency. Additionally, microbial analyses indicated that the warm season was more conducive to microorganism growth, with higher abundance, richness, diversity, homogeneity, and evenness of the microbial community, as manifested in the biodiversity indices, compared to the cold season. Pollutants in stormwater runoff entering the HSSF CW fostered microbial growth, particularly for dominant phyla such as Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Acidobacteria, and Bacteroidetes, which have shown moderate to strong correlations with specific soil properties and changes in influent-effluent concentrations of water quality parameters.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.278-283
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• 2003

This study was carried out to examine the nitrogen removal rate of a subsurface-flow treatment wetland system which was constructed on floodplain of the Kwangju River from May to June 2001. Its dimensions were 29m in length, 9m in width and 0.65m in depth. A bottom layer of 45cm in depth was filled with crushed granite with about $15{\sim}30\;mm$ in diameter and a middle layer of 10cm in depth had pea pebbles with about 10 mm in diameter. An upper layer of 5 cm in depth contained course sand. Reeds (Phragmites australis) were transplanted on the surface of the system. They were dug out of natural wetlands and stems were cut at about 40 cm height from their bottom ends. Water of the Kwangju River flowed into it via a pipe by gravity flow and its effluent was funneled back into the river. The height of reed stems was 44.2 cm in July 2001 and 75.3cm in September 2001. The number of stems was increased from $80\;stems/m^2$ in July 2001 to $136\;stems/m^2$ in September 2001. Volume and water quality of inflow and outflow were analyzed from July 2001 through December 2001. Inflow and outflow averaged 40.0 and $39.2\;m^3/day$, respectively. Hydraulic detention time was about 1.5 days. Average nitrogen uptake by reeds was $69.31\;N\;mg/m^2/day$. Removal rate of $NO_3-N$, $NH_3-N$, T-N averaged 195.58, 53.65, and $628.44\;mg/m^2/day$, respectively. Changes of $NO_3-N$ and $NH_3-N$ abatement rates were closely related to those of wetland temperatures. The lower removal rate of nitrogen species compared with that of subsurface-flow wetlands operating in North America could be attributed to the initial stage of the system and inclusion of two cold months into the six-month monitoring period. Increase of standing density of reeds within a few years will develop both root zones suitable for the nitrification of ammonia and surface layer substrates beneficial to the denitrification of nitrates into nitrogen gases, which may lead to increment in the nitrogen retention rate.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.89-99
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• 2006

The growth and biomass of reeds(Phragmites australis) growing in a subsurface treatment wetland system were investigated from April 2003 to October 2003. Nitrogen(N) and phosphorous(P) concentrations in above-ground(AG) and below-ground(BG) tissues of reeds were examined and the removal rate of N and P by reeds were analyzed. The system, 29 m in length, 9 m in width and 0.65 m in depth, was constructed in June 2001 on a floodplain in the down reach of the Kwangju Stream in Korea in order to purify polluted water of the stream. A bottom layer of 45 cm in depth was filled with crushed granites(15~30 mm in diameter) and a middle layer of 10 cm in depth was filled with pea pebbles(10 mm in diameter). An upper layer of 5 cm contained course sand. Reeds were transplanted on the surface of the system, which were dug out of natural wetlands, and their shoots were trimmed 40 cm in height. The height and density of the shoots averaged 237.7 cm and 244.0 shoot/$m^2$, respectively, when the reeds grew fully. The maximum biomass of AG and BG tissues were 1,964 and 1,577 g/$m^2$, respectively, and the AG : BG ratio of biomass was 1.26. Mean AG and BG dry weights were recorded as 1,355 and 748 g/$m^2$, respectively. The AG and BG tissue concentrations of N averaged 12.37 and 10.01 mg/g, respectively, and those of P 2.37 and 2.03 mg/g, respectively. Inflow to the system averaged 40 $m^3$/day. The concentrations of total nitrogen(T-N) in influent and effluent were 8.4 mg/L and 3.2 mg/L, respectively, and those of total phosphorous(T-P) were 0.73 and 0.38 mg/L, respectively. The total removal of T-N and T-P by the system during the investigation period averaged 140.2 and 9.7 g/$m^2$, respectively, and the total uptake of N and P by the reeds were calculated as 24.39 and 4.73 g/$m^2$, respectively. Average removals of about 17% of N and about 49% of P by reeds were recorded. The N and P concentrations in AG tissues were significantly different among the three zones of the system:near to inflow(St1), in the middle of system(St2), and near to outflow(St3). The N and P concentrations in BG tissues were also significantly different among St1, St2 and St3. N and P concentrations in AG and BG tissues of reeds growing in St1 were higher than those in St2 and St3. The height and density of shoots of reeds in St1 were larger than those in St2 and St3. Significant amounts of N and P in the influent were taken up by reeds in St1.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.1-7
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• 2007

For waste water treatment, artificial wetland was constructed in 1998. The size of artificial wetland is 20m${\times}$200m, with sand and gravel as media and Phragmites japonica was implanted. The removal rate of BOD, TN, and TP were 86%, 33% and 25% from June 2004 to November 2005 respectively, while those were 88%, 38% and 55% in 1999. Organic materials and nitrogen compounds are still effectively removed, after 6 years of construction, but the removal efficiency of phosphorus compounds is reduced. So for sustaining of artificial wetland as waste water treatment system, the removal efficiency of phosphorus compounds must be elevated.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.455-463
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• 2011

Conventional construction technologies have been continually applied without consideration of its impact to the environment. This resulted to various problems including the negative responses of local citizens that regarded some constructed facilities as aversive facilities causing environmental and hydraulic problems in the urban area, etc. To prevent these problems, therefore, alternative methods should be undertaken. A new approach termed "Low Impact Development (LID)" technology is currently adapted in developed countries around the world. This study aims to investigate the efficiency of the developed small constructed wetland (SCW) with horizontal subsurface flow as a LID technique applicable in urban areas. Two test-bed facilities were constructed and monitoring had been conducted between July 2010 and June 2011. Based on the findings, the removal efficiencies achieved for TSS, $COD_{Cr}$, TN, TP, Total Fe, Total Pb for the SCW-1 were 66, 53, 46, 55, 67 and 50%, respectively. On the other hand, the SCW-2 attained 82, 62, 51, 48, 74 and 42% efficiency for TSS, $COD_{Cr}$, TN, TP, Total Fe, Total Pb, respectively. The results indicated that the removal of particulate matter and heavy metals which are considered as main pollutants from stormwater runoff in urban areas was satisfactory in the system. Therefore, the test-beds proved to be appropriate for the treatment of pollutants in urban landuses such as road, parking lot, etc. The results of this study can contribute to the conservation of aquatic ecosystems and restoration of natural water cycle in the urban areas.

• Journal of Wetlands Research
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.231-242
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• 2011

Recently, the green spaces in the urban areas were greatly reduced due to urbanization and industrialization. As urban structures such as roads and buildings are built, the amount of impervious area within a watershed increases. High impervious surfaces are the common causes of high runoff volumes as the soil infiltration capacity decreases and the volume and rate of runoff increase thereby decreasing the groundwater recharge. These effects are causing many environmental problems, such as floods and droughts, climate change, heat island phenomenon, drying streams, etc. Most cities attempted to reduce sewer overflows by separating combined sewers, expanding treatment capacity or storage within the sewer system, or by replacing broken or decaying pipes. However, these practices can be enormously expensive than combined sewer overflows. Therefore, in order to improve these practices, alternative methods should be undertaken. A new approach termed as "Low Impact Development (LID)" technology is currently applied in developed countries around the world. The purpose of this study was to effectively manage runoff by adopting the LID techniques. Small Constructed Wetland(Horizontal Subsurface Flow, HSSF) Pilot-scale reactors were made in which monitoring and experiments were performed to investigate the efficiency of the system in removing pollutants from runoff. Based on the results of the Pilot-plant experiments, TSS, $COD_{Cr}$, TN, TP, Total Pb removal efficiency were 95, 82, 35, 91 and 57%, respectively. Most of the pollutants were reduced after passing the settling tank and the vertical filter media. The results of this study can contribute to the conservation of aquatic ecosystems and restoration of natural water cycle in the urban areas.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.317-324
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• 2012

To reduce non-point source pollutants in Juam Lake eco-wetlands, purification efficiencies of pollutants were investigated at three different systems. The constructed wetlands (CWs) consisted of A system, B system and C system. A system consisted of $1^{st}$ free water surface (FWS) CW, $2^{nd}$ FWS CW, $3^{rd}$ FWS CW, $4^{th}$ subsurface flow (SSF) CW and $5^{th}$ SSF CW. B system consisted of $1^{st}$ FWS CW, $2^{nd}$ FWS CW, $3^{rd}$ FWS CW, $4^{th}$ FWS CW and $5^{th}$ SSF CW. C system consisted of $1^{st}$ FWS CW, $2^{nd}$ FWS CW, $3^{rd}$ FWS CW, $4^{th}$ FWS CW and $5^{th}$ SSF CW. The concentrations of BOD, COD, SS, T-N and T-P in inflow ranged 0.20 ~ 0.91, 1.24 ~ 8.00, 0.60 ~ 8.60, 0.04 ~ 2.50 and $0.001{\sim}0.685mg\;L^{-1}$ from March to October in 2011, respectively. Removal rates of BOD, SS, T-N and T-P were high in Autumn, Spring, Spring and Summer, respectively. In A system, $1^{st}$ FWS CW, $2^{nd}$ FWS CW and $3^{rd}$ FWS CW were dominated by Leersia oryzoides. In B system, $1^{st}$ FWS CW, $3^{rd}$ FWS CW and $4^{th}$ FWS CW were dominated by Leersia oryzoides. In C system, $2^{nd}$ FWS CW and $3^{rd}$ FWS CW were dominated by Nymphaea teragona.