Journal article
The influence of design parameters on clogging of stormwater biofilters: A large-scale column study
S Le Coustumer, TD Fletcher, A Deletic, S Barraud, P Poelsma
Water Research | PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD | Published : 2012
Abstract
A large-scale laboratory study was conducted to test the influence of design and operating conditions on the lifespan of stormwater biofilters. The evolution of hydraulic conductivity over time was studied in relation to a number of key design parameters (media type, filter depth, vegetation type, system sizing, etc). The biofilters were observed to clog over time, with average hydraulic conductivity decreasing by a factor of 3.6 over the 72 weeks of testing. The choice of plant species appears to have a significant effect on the rate of decrease in permeability, with plants with thick roots (e.g. Melaleuca) demonstrating an ability to maintain permeability over time. Other species studied, ..
View full abstractGrants
Funding Acknowledgements
This work was undertaken as part of the research program of the Facility for Advancing Water Biofiltration (now part of the Centre for Water Sensitive Cities), which was a joint-venture between Monash University and AECOM (notably Tony Wong and Peter Breen), funded under the Victorian Government's Science Technology and Innovation Initiative. We wish also to acknowledge the contributions to the laboratory work by Yaron Zinger, Justin Lewis, Geoff Taylor and Katia Bratieres, as well as other members of the Centre for Water Sensitive Cities at Monash University. We thank three anonymous reviewers whose comments helped to improve the manuscript.