Spirulina platensis Culture with Flue Gas Feeding as a Cyanobacteria-Based Carbon Sequestration Option

The scientific community is currently examining potential approaches in order to reduce the anthropical contributions to global warming. One approach is carbon capture and its storage, i.e., capturing CO2 at its source and storing it indefinitely to avoid its release into the atmosphere. Conversion of CO2 by microalgae or cyanobacteria is a sequestration option. Here, the application of an air-lift reactor to flue gas treatment using cyanobacteria for the absorption of CO2 was investigated, with the simultaneous abatement of NOx. A Spirulina platensis culture was fed with CO2 and NOx, simulating a flue gas. The preliminary test yielded positive indications on the process feasibility, both in terms of cell productivity (86.8 mg L(-1)d(-1)) and CO2 abatement (229 mg d(-1)). Opportune dosages of flue gas used in fed-batch test achieved a high abatement of CO2 (407 mg d(-1)), 90.0% removal of NOx, and a biomass production of 188.7mg L(-1)d(-1).