Lipid accumulating microalgae cultivation in textile wastewater: Environmental parameters optimization

The organic materials, nitrogen and phosphate nutrients in industrial textile wastewater could be utilized for algal growth. In order to increase algal wastewater treatment processing cost efficiency, microalgae collected in Taiwan could be grown using these wastewaters to produce biodiesel. The textile wastewater concentration, pH effects and phosphorus and nitrogen source effects on microalgae growth and lipid accumulation in Chlorella sp. G23 were investigated. The results showed the highest total fatty acid methyl ester content (20 +/- 4%) when microalgae G23 was cultivated using textile wastewater, K2HPO4 (4 mg/I.) and urea (1 g/L) at pH 10 with aeration (carbon dioxide sparging). The nitrogen source type had no effect on the overall NH4+-N and COD removal efficiency (75 +/- 3%). (C) 2017 Taiwan Institute of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.