The suitability of iron-ore and blast furnace slag for subsurface flow (SSF) constructed wetlands was studied over a period of four months. Dairy farm wastewater (TP 45 mg l-1) was percolated through buckets planted with reed (volume 9.1 l; hydraulic load 15 l m-2d-1). One group of buckets was kept under aerobic conditions and the other group under anaerobic conditions, monitored by continuous redox potential measurements. Even at high mass loading rates of 0.65 g P m-1d-1 the slag provided 98% removal efficiency and showed no decrease in performance with time. However, phosphorus fractionation data indicate that the high phosphorus retention capacity under aerobic conditions is to a great extent attributable to unstable sorption onto calcium compounds (NH4Cl-P). Phosphorus sorption of both the slag (200 μg P g-1) and the iron-ore (140 μg P g-1) was promoted by predominantly anaerobic conditions due to continuous formation of amorphous ferrous hydroxides. None of the substrates had adverse affects on reed growth.

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