HYDRO FERN for water depuration

Hydro Fern is a phytodepuration system aims at dearsenification and recovery of drinking water, rainwater, wastewater and industrial effluent.

The proposal involves the realisation of the Hydro Fern prototype plant that exploits hydroponic growing technologies and the ability of the perennial fern Pteris vittata to rapidly remove arsenic from water. The prototype consists of a scalable module for vertically growing plants that filter water under controlled conditions, optimising space and maximising arsenic removal efficiency.

The expected results are:

– optimisation of arsenic removal time from water;

– sustainable use of plants, used for multiple de-arsenification cycles;

– recovery and reuse of decontaminated water.

The objective of the proposal is to assess the feasibility, in terms of structure and long-term functionality, of sustainable solutions integrated with natural phytodepuration processes.