Aquatic Weed Research Articles

Influence of lignocellulosic components on the anaerobic digestibility of aquatic weeds: Comparison with terrestrial crops

Anaerobic digestion treatment of excessively growing aquatic weeds has been paid attention due to the energy recovery with low energy requirement. The effects of lignocellulosic components on anaerobic digestibility of terrestrial herbaceous plants have been extensively researched, not much work has been done on aquatic weeds. Because of the flexible structure, aquatic weeds' chemical compositions and anaerobic digestibility may differ from terrestrial plants. This study investigated the relationships between the amount and ratio of lignocellulosic components (cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin) and the kinetic parameters (ultimate methane yield, maximum methane production rate, lag phase, and T80, which refers to the time required to produce 80% of the total methane) calculated using the modified Gompertz model. Negative correlations were found out not only between lignin contents and the ultimate methane yield but also between hemicellulose content and the maximum methane production rate. The correlations between cellulose/lignin and ultimate methane yield and between cellulose/hemicellulose and maximum methane production rate, suggesting these parameters were primarily regulated by the lignocellulosic ratios. The correlation between cellulose/lignin and ultimate methane yield including aquatic weeds and terrestrial plants was approximately fitted using the same equation. While the maximum methane production rate of aquatic weeds and terrestrial herbaceous plants was not fitted to one equation with cellulose/hemicellulose, correlated with cellulose/estimated xylose on the same equation. This might be because cellulose degradation was hindered by xylose owing to the bonding of cellulose to lignin, thus determining the degradation rate of cellulose. Therefore, while cellulose can be degraded and converted to methane, coverage by lignin and xylose limits cellulose degradability and thus regulated methane production from aquatic weed.

Extraction of shikimic acid from water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) using sonication: An approach towards waste valorization

Shikimic acid (SA) is a valuable compound found in water hyacinth and is a precursor for synthesis of antiviral drug oseltamivir phosphate (Tamiflu®) which is used to treat H5N1 avian influenza. In the present work, the acid was extracted from different morphological parts (stem, leaves, and roots) of water hyacinth (a notorious aquatic weed) using sonication. The parametric study has been conducted by varying sonication time (10–50 min), solvent composition (methanol + water), solvent volume (20–50 mL), amplitude of sonication (30–60%), and pulse ratio (20–50%) for improving the recovery of shikimic acid (SA), antioxidant activity (AA) and total phenolic content (TPC) of water hyacinth extract. Also, the acid was extracted conventionally as a benchmark study. The highest yield of 2.4% at 40 min and 3.1% at 30 min was observed in case of conventional and ultrasound assisted extraction (UAE), respectively for stem. Leaves showed a higher TPC value of 7.4 mg GAE/g biomass and a higher AA was observed 83.21% at 20 min for stem in case of conventional method. The highest TPC value of 11.11 mg GAE/g biomass has been observed for leaves while stem has shown the highest AA of 87.72% at 10 min of sonication time for UAE. It was possible to recover the valuable chemicals with better processing conditions in the case of UAE.

A Phytosociological Survey on weed Flora and Diversity in Rice Fields of Chidambaram Block, T.N., India

A phytosociological survey was carried out to assess the varied weed flora and diversity in rice fields of Chidambaram block, Tamil Nadu, India. Chidambaram lies in low land habitat and the climate is subtropical. An average annual rainfall varies between 1200 to 1500 mm. The study has been done during 2020, Navarai season to determine the weed flora, species composition, density, frequency and important value index (IVI). To project the types of weed sps that are mainly affected the low land rice ecosystems. A total of 4 sedges, 3 grasses, 8 broad leaved weeds and 1 aquatic weed were detected. Sedges are most prominent weed flora found in the rice fields of Chidambaram block. The findings indicated that Cyperus difformis, Echinochloa colonum are the most abundant weeds in rice field followed by Cyperus rotundus, Echinochloa crusgalli, Leptonchloa chinensis, Eclipta alba and Sphenoclea zelyancia.

Nutrition Value and Growth Ability of Aquatic Weed Wolffia globosa as Alternative Feed Sources for Aquaculture System

One of the problems of aquaculture is the high cost of feed. Therefore, how to minimize the feed cost is of the main goals. It is necessary to find out natural sources that can be used as alternative feed. Wolffia globosa is an aquatic weed that is presumed to be used as an alternative feed source. Study the nutritional content of the Wolffia was conducted in June 2019, while the growth ability was conducted both outdoors and indoors in July 2019 at Research Center for Limnology Laboratory, LIPI. The W. globosa (percentage in dry weight) contained protein: 45.54%, fat: 5.33%, crude fiber: 9.98%, ash: 20.43%, and Nitrogen Free Extract:19.21%. It also contains 15 types of amino acids as much as 1.51 %w/w. At the outdoor system culture, the Wolffia has daily growth rate/GR (g/day) was 64.62−120.6, specific growth rate/SGR (%/day) was 14.622-15.333, and the daily productivity/P (g/m2/day) was 97.757−176.659. While at the indoor system culture the value of GR (g/day), SGR (%/day), and P (g/m2/day) were 0.675−1.50; 9.889−12.643; and 25.883−64.564 respectively. It is indicated that this Wolffia is very potential to be an alternative natural feed source for aquaculture or another purpose and needs further research.

Saccharification of alkali pre-treated aquatic weeds biomass using partially purified cellulase immobilized on different matrices

Enzyme immobilization has gained considerable significance among other techniques for improving the saccharification ability of disparate lignocellulosic biomasses. In this investigation, the partially purified cellulase (approximately 38 kDa) from Glutamicibacter arilaitensis strain ALA4 was immobilized on various matrices (calcium alginate, k-carrageenan, agar-agar, and gelatin) for evaluating saccharification ability of alkali (4% w/v NaOH) pre-treated aquatic weeds (Alternanthera philoxeroides and Brachiaria mutica) biomass. The immobilization of cellulase using various matrices showed improvement in total reducing sugar (TRS) yield and saccharification efficiency of biomasses in the order of calcium alginate > gelatine > k-carrageenan > agar-agar. Calcium alginate immobilized cellulase exhibited maximum TRS and saccharification efficiency of 17.85±0.18 mg/g and 80.32±0.6%, respectively from pre-treated A. philoxeroides biomass. On the other hand, calcium alginate immobilized cellulase exhibited maximum TRS and saccharification efficiency of 19.51±0.2 mg/g and 87.79±0.6%, respectively from pre-treated B. mutica biomass. Further, the thermo-alkali stability, storage stability, and reusability of calcium alginate immobilized cellulase were determined using standard methodologies. The immobilized cellulase showed higher thermo-alkali stability than free cellulase with residual activities of 46.36±3.6 and 40.55±2.6% at 65 °C and pH 10.0, respectively. Likewise, the immobilized cellulase retained its activity for at least 22–24 days of storage at 4 °C. Most importantly, the immobilized enzyme maintained its saccharification ability towards pre-treated A. philoxeroides and B. mutica up to 4th and 5th cycle, respectively. In conclusion, bacterial cellulase can be immobilized on different matrices, particularly calcium alginate for improving the TRS yield and saccharification efficiency of aquatic weeds biomasses.

Aquatic plant (Aquatic Weed) potential ingredients for fish feed

Aquaculture and fisheries continue to be important sources of food, future earnings, nutritional security as well as economic opportunities for hundreds of millions of people worldwide. Fish as the inexpensive source of animal protein accounts for a significant portion of the worldwide food supply, as well as the global fish production sector has the challenge of increasing output to satisfy future protein demand. India has witnessed the growth of freshwater aquaculture from backyard farming to a commercial fish culture where carp remains a mainstay of Indian aquaculture contributing about 87% of the total aquaculture production of our country. In aquaculture practices feed and feeding management practices are play a vital role, about 50-60% of production cost used for feeding management. Nowadays high cost and fluctuating quality of fish meals have led to the need to discover alternative protein sources for feed formulation, considerable emphasis has been focused on the use of the conventional plant, oilseed meals, including soybean, groundnut, cottonseed, and rapeseed meals. The utilization of leaf protein concentrates as dietary feed additives have considerable promise due to the practicality of synthesizing a high-quality protein from tropical and subtropical aquatic plants leaves.

Production of Methane from Aquatic Weeds and Other Organic Substrates Through Anaerobic Digestion Under Different Climates

Production of Methane from Aquatic Weeds and Other Organic Substrates Through Anaerobic Digestion Under Different Climates

A review on potential uses of invasive aquatic weed; water hyacinth

A review on potential uses of invasive aquatic weed; water hyacinth

Studies on the Pistia stratiotes Reduction of Acute Toxicity of Malathion on Growth and Protein Content in Fresh Water Fish Catla catla Fingerlings

The primary objective of this research was to examine the effect of malathion exposure on growth and protein content in Catla catla fingerlings (3.87±0.10 g). Malathion's 96 h LC50 value for fingerlings of C. catla was 10.0 µl/l. There was no mortality below the concentration of 9.5 µl/l. During 24, 48, 72, and 96 h, the growth and biochemical composition of fish of control group were significantly greater than those of the malathion-treated groups. The conclusion is that both low and high amounts of malathion are very harmful and affects vital organs of fish. Experiment was performed to examine the growth and protein content of fingerlings of Catla catla exposed to malathion for eighty days. During this experiment, the fish were fed Water Lettuce, Pistia stratiotes young leaf meal at various concentrations as a control diet (0% P. stratiotes) and experimental diets containing 10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% of P. stratiotes in place of fish meal as a protein source and designated as P0, P10, P20, P30, P40, and P50, respectively. There was a statistically significant difference (P <0.01) between growth and protein content. The findings also shown that malathion-exposed fingerlings of C. catla fed meals containing up to 30% P. stratiotes meal performed the best among experimental diets. Although fish meal is irreplaceable, aquatic weed meal may be added up to the optimal quantity to make cost-effective feed for C. catla.

Aquatic weed supplementation for common carp (Cyrinuscarpio Var. Communis) fingerlings to ascertain growth and survival

Malik, S.I., Asimi, O.A., Khan, I.A., Ashwani, K., Shah, F.A., Bhat B.A. and Bhat, F.A. 2022. Aquatic weed supplementation for common carp (Cyrinuscarpio Var. Communis) fingerlings to ascertain growth and survival. Animal Nutrition and Feed Technology, 22: 673–678.

Automatic Detection of Aquatic Weeds: A Case Study in the Guadiana River, Spain

The spread of aquatic invasive plants is a major concern in several zones of the world's geography. These plants, which are not part of the natural ecosystem, cause a negative impact to the environment, as well as to economy and society. In Spain, large areas of Guadiana (the second longest river in Spain) have been invaded by such plants. Among the strategies to address this problem, monitoring and detection play an important role to control the spatio-temporal distribution of the invasive plants. The main objective of this work is to develop a methodology able to automatically detect the geo-location of aquatic invasive plants using remote sensing and machine learning techniques. To this end, several classification algorithms have been applied to freely available multispectral satellite imagery, collected by ESA's Sentinel-2 satellite. A quantitative and comparative assessment is conducted using different machine and deep learning algorithms, from classical methods such as unsupervised K-means to supervised random forests (RFs) and convolutional neural networks (CNNs). This study also proposes a methodology for validating the obtained classification results, generating synthetic ground truth images based on available high spatial resolution imagery. The obtained results demonstrate the suitability of some of the considered algorithms for automatic detection of aquatic weeds in satellite images with medium spatial resolution.

EVALUATION OF NUTRIENT CONTENT OF COMPOSTS MADE FROM WATER HYACINTH, KITCHEN WASTE AND MANURES

Though composts are prepared with different agricultural and non-agricultural materials, information on preparation of compost with water hyacinth is limited. An experiment was conducted at the Germplasm Centre of Agrotechnology Discipline of Khulna University of Bangladesh during January to March 2014 to evaluate the nutrient content of composts made from water hyacinth (WH), kitchen waste (KW), cow dung (CD), farmyard manure (FYM), and poultry litter (PL). The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design (RCBD) with 15 treatments viz. WH, KW, CD, FYM, PL, WH:KW (1:1), WH:CD (1:1), WH:FYM (1:1), WH:PL (1:1), KW:CD (1:1), KW:FYM (1:1), KW:PL (1:1), CD:FYM (1:1), CD:PL (1:1), and FYM:PL (1:1) and three replications. The prepared composts were dark brown to black with earthy smell and large-textured. Cow dung in combination with farmyard manure or poultry litter resulted highest content of total N, S, Zn, and B and farmyard manure and poultry litter had highest content of total P. Again, poultry litter with water hyacinth estimated highest total K. Combination of water hyacinth with farmyard manure had the highest Ca and Mg content. Therefore, combination of composting materials (CD, PL, FYM, WH) resulted better nutrient content of composts rather than using alone. The results suggest use of water hyacinth, an invasive aquatic weed, as a composting material that can improve our soil health.

Effect of biofoliar fertilizers extracted from aquatic weeds on Chinese mustard (Brassica juncea) a green vegetable in Central Vietnam

Chinese mustard green is known as a vegetable among consumers and has high economic value in Central Vietnam. To increase the growth, production and quality of Chinese mustard green plant, it is necessary to apply biofoliar fertilizers that are sourced from organic materials, two of which are seaweed and water hyacinth. This study was conducted during 2020 at Thua Thien Hue province, Central Vietnam with an aim to determine the best rate and type of biofoliar fertilizer o growth, yield and quality of Chinese mustard green. The pot experiment consisted of 2 factors with 2 types of biofoliar fertilizer extracted from seaweed and water hyacinth at 4 spraying rates (0, 10, 5 and 3%) arranged under factorial design with 3 replicates. The results showed that the growth, yield and quality were best at 10% spraying rate in both biofoliar fertilizers extracted from seaweed and water hyacinth, especially in the type of biofoliar fertilizer extracted from seaweed (yield increasing 37 - 43%, brix value of 1.9 to 2.2% and nitrate content in leaf within the permissible standard < 1000 mg/kg). Therefore, it is proposed to use biofoliar fertilizer extracted from seaweed at the spraying rate of 10% based on 500 kg of lime/ha and 15 tons of cattle manure/ha to achieve higher yield and quality of Chinese mustard green.

Biosorption of Ni2+ and Cr3+ in synthetic sewage: Adsorption capacities of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes)

Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) is an aquatic weed that is causing numerous adverse effects on freshwater bodies. Developing countries are still battling on how to control the growth of this weed without damaging other aquatic lives important to man. Literatures have revealed that most developing countries are still discharging untreated sewage containing heavy metals into waterbodies due to economic and technical constraints in handling conventional methods of treating heavy metals. Hence, the research investigated the possibility of using water hyacinth to adsorb heavy metals (Ni2+ and Cr3+) from sewage before discharging into waterbodies in order to solve two major problems faced in the aquatic environment, at minimal cost. This was achieved by using the said weed (water hyacinth) to treat Ni2+ and Cr3+ solutions prepared in the lab. Results showed that the adsorption process for both ions occurred on heterogeneous surfaces while the mechanism of adsorption followed Pseudo 2nd–order kinetics. The Freundlich, Langmuir and Temkin adsorption capacities for Ni2+ are 19.6925 L/g, 0.7470 L/mg and 1.1093 L/mg respectively while for Cr3+ are 16.814 L/g, 0.7011 L/mg and 0.9623 L/mg respectively. However, the heat of sorption for Ni2+ is 96.906 KJ/mol while that of Cr3+ is 98.749 KJ/mol. Furthermore, FT-IR analysis identified seven functional groups involved in the binding sites with more of hydroxyl group (O–H) from alcohol and carboxylic acid. It was concluded that water hyacinth could be used as a potential bio-adsorbent of metal ions.

A Review of the Biocontrol Programmes Against Aquatic Weeds in South Africa

Biological control (biocontrol) against invasive macrophytes is one of the longest standing programmes in South Africa, initiated in the 1970s against water hyacinth, Pontederia crassipes Mart. (Pontederiaceae). Since then, 15 agent species (13 insects, one mite and one pathogen) have been released against six weeds, most of which are floating macrophytes, with excellent levels of success. The release of the water hyacinth planthopper Megamelus scutellaris Berg (Hemiptera: Delphacidae) in particular, has improved biocontrol prospects for water hyacinth since 2018. In the last decade, however, a new suite of submerged and rooted emergent invasive macrophytes has been targeted. The first release against a submerged macrophyte in South Africa, and the first release against Brazilian waterweed, Egeria densa Planch. (Hydrocharitaceae), anywhere in the world, was achieved with the release of a leafmining fly, Hydrellia egeriae Rodrigues-Júnior, Mathis & Hauser (Diptera: Ephydridae). Yellow flag, Iris pseudacorus L. (Iridaceae) and Mexican waterlily, Nymphaea mexicana Zucc. (Nymphaeaceae), have also been targeted for biocontrol for the first time worldwide, and are in the early stages of agent development. Post-release evaluations, long term monitoring and controlled experiments have highlighted the need for a more holistic approach to managing aquatic invasive plants in South Africa, whose presence is largely driven by eutrophication, resulting in regime shifts between floating and submerged invaded states.

The EFFECT OF HYDROPHYTES ON THE PERFORMANCE OF SECONDARY CANAL

The hydrophytes in canal effect directly canal performance by reducing water velocity, enhances sedimentation and reduce canal cross section area which raise water level and reduces water flow. Indirectly the hydrophytes detaches from their origin and flow with water stuck with outlet and reduces its proportionality. In this regard a study was conducted on secondary canal known as Yar Husain Minor (YHM) of Maira Branch Canal, which is part of the Upper Swat Canal Irrigation System in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Maira Branch Canal and its secondary canal were designed for Crop Based Irrigation Operation (CBIO), which could supply irrigation water for maximum copping intensity (180%) even during peak periods of irrigation requirements. The current water allowance was 0.67 Ls-1 ha-1 (6.6 mm day-1), which was based on the maximum crop water requirements. The several challenges for operation of YHM and other secondary canals of Maira Branch came from physical barrier mostly in the form of hydrophytes on the performance of YHM canal. Further challenges came from the fact that it receives water from River Swat which is turbid in summer and River Indus (Tarbela Reservoir) which is clear with low turbidity. This caused sedimentation and growth of hydrophytes in the YHM. Furthermore Triangular Profile Crump’s weirs were in all secondary canals including YHM for proportional division to the tertiary outlets (moghas). The study objectives were to investigate the effects of hydrophytes on canal capacity and at the outlets on the performance of the YHM. Hydrophytes growth was observed in head reaches of canal and samples were collected and were identified at the Department of Weed Science &amp; Botany, The University of Agriculture Peshawar. Five types of aquatic weeds were identified. The hydrophytes growth in canal head reaches directly reduces the cross section by more than 50%. Indirectly the detached hydrophytes were get stuck in the outlets and affected its performance. Therefore, daily discharges were measured with/without detached hydrophytes at each outlet from staff gauging. Frequency was based on days stone hydrophytes present divided by total time. It was concluded that secondary canal performance was low due to hydrophytes. The hydrophytes and users interventions influenced the outlets performance by 80%. Trifurcators type outlets were more prone to influence by hydrophytes followed by bifurcators outlet.&#x0D;

Potentially toxic elements contamination and its removal by aquatic weeds in the riverine system: A comparative approach

Thamirabarani river acquires large untreated sewage effluents from the Tirunelveli and Thoothukudi districts of South Tamil Nadu. This study examined the concentration of trace elements in water, sediment, and phytoaccumulation potential of aquatic weeds viz., A. cristata, E. crassipes, S. natans, and P. stratiotes, growing along Srivaikundam dam of Thamirabarani river. The Pb, As, Hg, Cd, and Ni concentrations in water were slightly higher than the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) drinking water guidelines; however, their accumulation in sediment was below WHO's sediment quality guideline. This study concludes that the phytoaccumulation factor (PAF) and translocation factor (TF) was >1 in E. crassipes and A. cristata, representing them as hyperaccumulators, suitable for phytoremediation in polluted localities. E. crassipes, A. cristata, and S. natans accumulated (100–500 fold) higher trace elements concentrations than that present in the water. Also, the concentrations of trace elements found in the aquatic weeds were below the recommended levels for the critical plant range (CRP). These selected aquatic weeds are more suitable for plant hybridization to be modified as superbug plants.

Identifying Advanced Biotechnologies to Generate Biofertilizers and Biofuels From the World's Worst Aquatic Weed.

Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes L.) was introduced as an invasive plant in freshwater bodies more particularly in Asia and Africa. This invasive plant grows rapidly and then occupies a huge layer of freshwater bodies. Hence, challenges are facing many countries for implementing suitable approaches for the valorization of the world’s worst aquatic weed, and water hyacinth (WH). A critical and up-to-date review article has been conducted for more than 1 year, based on more than 100 scientific journal articles, case studies, and other scientific reports. Worldwide distribution of WH and the associated social, economic, and environmental impacts were described. In addition, an extensive evaluation of the most widely used and innovative valorization biotechnologies, leading to the production of biofertilizer and bioenergy from WH, and was dressed. Furthermore, an integrated search was used in order to examine the related advantages and drawbacks of each bioprocess, and future perspectives stated. Aerobic and anaerobic processes have their specific basic parameters, ensuring their standard performances. Composting was mostly used even at a large scale, for producing biofertilizers from WH. Nevertheless, this review explored some critical points to better optimize the conditions (presence of pollutants, inoculation, and duration) of composting. WH has a high potential for biofuel production, especially by implementing several pretreatment approaches. This review highlighted the combined pretreatment (physical-chemical-biological) as a promising approach to increase biofuel production. WH valorization must be in large quantities to tackle its fast proliferation and to ensure the generation of bio-based products with significant revenue. So, a road map for future researches and applications based on an advanced statistical study was conducted. Several recommendations were explored in terms of the choice of co-substrates, initial basic parameters, and pretreatment conditions and all crucial conditions for the production of biofuels from WH. These recommendations will be of a great interest to generate biofertilizers and bioenergy from WH, especially within the framework of a circular economy.

A global review of the invasive aquatic weed Cabomba caroliniana [A. Gray] (Carolina fanwort): Current and future management challenges, and research gaps

AbstractCabomba caroliniana [A. Gray] (Cabombaceae), also known as Carolina fanwort, is a native of South America which has now become a serious invasive threat to aquatic systems across the world. Its capacity to inundate a water column with active fragments and seeds makes the containment and management of C. caroliniana a challenging task and an ecological and economic necessity. Previous and current management efforts have been largely focussed on biological control, drawdown methods, herbicide application, manual removal, shading and the use of a concentrated urea solution. Although these methods have shown some success in reducing large infestations, they are generally considered to be unreliable when used alone since they are unable to contain or reduce the species in the long term with a single‐use treatment protocol. It is feared that, without effective, improved and integrated management strategies, C. caroliniana will continue to invade aquatic ecosystems beyond its already wide current distribution, thus causing increased global economic and environmental damage. This review will therefore explore the biology and distribution of C. caroliniana and examine the current and previous attempts for its global management. It will also evaluate the most successful current treatments and clarify where research efforts are urgently needed for the improved long‐term extirpation of this aquatic invader.

Utilization of waste aquatic weeds for the sustainable production of nitrogen doped nanoporous carbon for CO2 capture

Aquatic weeds, such as water hyacinth (WH) and water lettuce (WL), are among world’s nastiest aquatic weeds which unswervingly effects water eutrophication. If these fast growing weeds could be harvested on a large scale, it could not only possible to mitigate the issue of water eutrophication but also provide a good source for biomass. Herein, we demonstrate a facile, solid-state pyrolysis and chemical activation process at different temperatures (x-600–800) to convert the WH and WL into carbon microstructures (WHC-x and WLC-x). The results indicate that porous carbon exhibit high specific surface area 1335 and 983 m2 g−1 for WHC-700 and WLC-600, respectively. As a solid-state adsorbent, the obtained porous carbon showed a high CO2 adsorption capacity at ambient pressures of up to 6.01 and 3.48 mmol g−1 at 0 °C, for WHC-700 and WLC-600 respectively.