Abstract
Using appropriate plants that are highly capable of accumulating uranium (U) is required for the success in phytoremediation of U-contaminated soil. The objectives of this study were to screen plants capable of U accumulation in the aboveground plant tissue and to find the trend of U accumulation among the plant families by using a sand culture method. In a laboratory setting with grow lights, each plant species was grown in 3 cm of sterilized silica sand that was amended with the nutrient solution. Four days before the plant harvest, the sand was treated with 50 mg Ul-1solution including a U weathering product dissolved in citric acid. A total of 32 plant species from 5 families were screened and found to accumulate from 4 to 416 mg of U per kg dry tissue weight. Plant species inChenopodiaceaeandFabaceaehad the highest mean U concentrations while plants inPoaceaeaccumulated less U than the dicotyledonous plants tested. Based on the result of sand culture screening, the plants for phytoremediation of U-contaminated soils could be selected by using a mathematical model related to plant characteristics (e.g. biomass and planting density) to predict a long-term U-removal rate from the soil.
