Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

in need of an experiment or any other practical demonstration which can prove the effectiveness of biological organisms in purifying contaminated water.

Water contamination is still quite a broad topic. For example, what are the contaminants that we are talking about here? I remember how some bacteria were used to clean up oil spills, but the exact method to purify contaminated water largely depends on the type of contaminants.

Shijun
Science Buddies Staff

I am aware of bacteria that have been used to clean up oil spills. Other bacteria and plants are used at wastewater treatment plants to purify the water. I believe that mangroves and some form of lily are commonly used, as they abosorb specific contaminants. However, like Shijun said, it really depends what type of contaminant you are trying to clean up. Once you have decided on a specific contaminant, you can then formulate a question. One such question might compare the effectiveness of a two different plants at absorbing the contaminant, or comparing the effectieness of a plant compared to a bacteria.