Abstract
Phytoremediation is one of the safer, economical, and environment-friendly techniques in which plants are used to recover polluted soils, particularly those containing toxic organic substances and heavy metals. However, it is considered as a slow form of remediation, as plants take time to grow and flourish. Various amendments, including the augmentation of certain chemical substances i.e., ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA), ethylene glycol tetra acetic acid (EGTA), and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) have been used to induce and enhance the phytoextraction capacity in plants. Several reports show that chemical amendments can improve the metal accumulation in different plant parts without actually affecting the growth of the plant. This raises a question about the amount and mechanisms of chemical amendments that may be needed for potentially good plant growth and metal phytoremediation. This review provides a detailed discussion on the mechanisms undertaken by three important chemical amendments that are widely used in enhancing phytoremediation (i.e., EDTA, EGTA, and SDS) to support plant growth as well as soil phytoremediation. A core part of this review focuses on the recent advances that have been made using chemical amendments in assisting metal phytoremediation.
Highlights
Heavy metal pollution is regarded as a serious problem for crop production [1]
Chemical amendments are useful in phytoremediation methods used to phytoextract heavy metals from contaminated soil; adding ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA), ethylene glycol tetra acetic acid (EGTA), and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) have a few limitations [84], such as toxic effects toward soil microbes [85], soil enzyme activities, and on cultivated plant species [86]
Heavy metals can cause serious environmental pollution, as they can accumulate in soils and persist for a long time, and even possibly enter the food chain
Summary
Heavy metal pollution is regarded as a serious problem for crop production [1]. In soil ecosystems, the gradual increase in heavy metal levels is a major concern throughout the world [2]. Several sources of heavy metals include medical waste, the combustion of coal, petrol, mining, fertilizers, smelting, and pesticides, which are adding heavy metals to the environment [3,4]. Some modern techniques that have been used for the remediation of heavy metals are based on the biological, chemical, and physical approaches [6]. Phytoremediation is one of the biological approaches used for the remediation of soils. Phytoremediation is preferable due to its safety and lower cost as compared to physical and chemical remediation [6]. EDTA is considered as having the most potential and most studied chemical amendment, and is used to increase the phytoextraction of metals from contaminated soils [9]. The phytoremediation of heavy metals in plants may be enhanced through an emerging chemical amendments technology. Quantities of sludge [16,17]
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