Impact of Zeolite to Maintain Water Quality and Increasing the Growth of Mono-sex Male Nile Tilapia Cultured in Concrete Ponds

Abstract

The expansion of intensive aquaculture to decrease the gap between fish productivity and consumption negatively affects the water quality and fish productivity. Therefore, the current research aims to use zeolite to maintain water quality while increasing the growth of mono-sex male Nile tilapia in concrete ponds. 270 tilapia fingerlings were placed in a pond with a 10.8 m 3 volume of water. Zeolite was used at a constant rate of 5 kg/m 3 in different cases (Tr1: Zeolite was put at the bed of the pond, Tr2: Zeolite was put inside a net bag suspended inside the pond, Tr3: Zeolite was put in a plastic tank outside the pond, Tr4: Zeolite was put in an industrial channel outside the pond) in addition to control case (without putting zeolite). Three replicates for each treatment, the experiment was conducted within 140 days. The findings revealed that water quality was effectively maintained, and fish growth performance improved by adding zeolite (5 kg/m 3 water) across different cases (Tr1, Tr2, Tr3, and Tr4) compared to the control case. Furthermore, employing zeolite in Tr1 (placing it at the pond bed) demonstrated the most effective water quality maintenance and growth performance enhancement among the various zeolite application cases. Therefore, it is recommended, under similar conditions, to apply zeolite at a rate of 5 kg/m 3 by situating it in the pond bed. Additionally, further research is warranted to determine the optimal zeolite dosage for diverse aquaculture conditions.