I have found so much research on Lemna minor that I don't even know where to start. Suffice it to say, there are endless possibilities here so I am keeping my IRP to measuring the Nitrate levels in the water. There is research being conducted, at Wildflower Preserve in Florida, on removing excess nutrients introduced by treated wastewater effluence when the land was being used as a golf course. Their research has shown high levels of nitrogen, phosphorus and chlorophyll in their test ponds. Additionally, I have found some interesting articles from the African Journal of Aquatic Science on the remediation of eutropic water using Lemna minor and one on the NIH (National Institute of Health) website on bioremdiation for CAFO's (concentrated animal feeding operations).
For my IRP, I will be using the Biotronette Mark III Environmental Chamber in the lab on the South campus in New Smyrna Beach. This will allow me to monitor the plants on a daily basis. I will be purchasing the Lemna minor in order to have a clean specimen. Originally, I had planned to "fish" it out of a local pond, but after careful consideration, I was concerned about bringing unknowns into the lab area. I plan on using 3 culture dishes, 1 will be a control, 1 will be a steady state and 1 will have 1/2 the plant matter removed weekly. The culture dishes I will be using are 4 1/2 inch diameter with a 250ml capacity. I will be using DI water (distilled water) and adjust the liquid volume to 150ml to account for the plant matter. The levels of nitrate will be monitored every 48 hours as well as the evaporation and transpiration rates. Water levels will be adjusted accordingly. I will be adding a nitrogen fertilizer to the water every 48 hours also. Due to the time constraints, because of spring break, I will not begin the experiment until March 19.
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| Environmental Chamber |
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| Culture Dish |
Ansari, A. A., & Khan, F. A. (2008). Remediation of
eutrophic water using Lemna minor in a controlled environment. African
Journal Of Aquatic Science, 33(3), 275-278.
doi:10.2989/AJAS.2008.33.3.11.623
Burkholder, J., Libra, B., Weyer, P., Heathcote, S., Kolpin,
D., Thorne, P. S., & Wichman, M. (2007). Impacts of Waste from Concentrated
Animal Feeding Operations on Water Quality. Environmental Health
Perspectives, 115(2), 308–312. http://doi.org/10.1289/ehp.8839
“Wildflower Preserve
Water Quality Initiatives.” Lemon Bay Conservancy,
lemonbayconservancy.org/wildflower-preserve/wildflower-preserve-water-quality-initiatives/.
First--you always have the best titles! I do have questions about your methods--1) what do you mean by 'steady state'? 2) what is the point of removing 1/2 plant matter weekly? 3) how are you planning to monitor nitrate and why every 48 hours? 4) how much will you be adding every 48 hours? 5) have you thought about water evaporation? Will you be monitoring that and how will you address that? I think that's it for now...
ReplyDeleteDr. Woodall, you always ask the toughest questions :-) 1) By steady state I mean does the duckweed at some point stop removing the nitrates from the water? The issue with that is the time period for the experiment though. 2) Now that you mention it, I don't know why I thought to remove 1/2 plant matter, except that it doubles its size about every 48 hours without the added nitrates. I'll rethink that idea. 3) I will use a pipette to remove a few drops of water and test it for nitrate levels. As far as the timing, honestly, 48 hours sounded like a good time period. In some of the research I've read, the larger the size of the container the longer the time period. 4) I wanted to get your input on the amount of nitrates added. 5) I'll be monitoring the evaporation rate, but because of the limited time period for the experiment, I am not sure yet if I will add water or not. I'd like your input on that also. I am still working out some of the kinks ! Still plenty of research to do !!
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