Abstract
This paper presents an eco-friendly, low-impact development (LID) approach, developed and implemented at a car wash site for a cleaner and greener environment. In this approach, the contaminated water discharged after car washing is treated as it is directed through an engineered, ecology-based water-management design. The design involves poplar (Populus deltoides) trees, Silva Cells®, and Fly-ash based Geopolymer concrete pavers working collectively to minimize the percolation of contaminants into the soil. In this novel system, each component has a vital role. For instance, the extensive roots of the poplar trees enable water filtration owing to phytoremediation effect; while the Silva Cells® promote stormwater management, planting of poplar trees and serve as a foundation for paver blocks. Lastly, the paver blocks made from industrial waste allow it to withstand urban load and infiltrate water runoff, thereby reducing runoff quantities. To evaluate the efficacy of contaminant uptake by this system, pH, electrical conductivity and turbidity, which are indicators of water quality levels, were monitored pre- and post-treatment. The percentage change in total dissolved solids indicates the potential of this treatment system for effective treatment of the contaminated car wash water.
Highlights
Rapid urbanization and industrialization are constantly challenging the sustainable growth of our society
Despite having the largest water footprint and with a blue water footprint of 243 billion cubic meter (BCM)/year, water shortages to cater the demands of multiple sectors such as manufacturing industry, agriculture, household, electricity and gas are predicted in the near future [3,4]
The poplar trees planted at the wastewater treatment system were compared with that planted
Summary
Rapid urbanization and industrialization are constantly challenging the sustainable growth of our society. The most commonly used treatment technologies involve coagulation, foam floatation, filtration, solvent extraction, adsorption, flocculation, sedimentation, demineralization and have their own limitations [8,9,10,11,12] These waste water treatment facilities are expensive involving a dense network of underground pipes requiring larger areas [13]. To address this sporadic concern and the growing inadequacy of conventional methods to treat wastewater, researchers have recently started to focus on investigating smart alternatives or integrated technologies to combat this issue nationally as well as globally
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