Free water surface constructed wetlands: review of pollutant removal performance and modeling approaches

Abstract

Free water surface constructed wetlands (FWSCWs) for the treatment of various wastewater types have evolved signi cantly over the last few decades. With an increasing need and interest in FWSCWs applications worldwide due to their cost-effectiveness and other bene ts, this paper reviews recent literature on FWSCWs' ability to remove different types of pollutants (i.e., nutrients, heavy metals, antibiotics, and pesticides) that may co-exist in wetland in ow, and discusses approaches for simulating hydraulic and pollutant removal processes. A bibliometric analysis of recent literature reveals that China has the highest number of publications, followed by the USA. The collected data show that FWSCWs can