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Biogas Production from Waste Microalgal Biomass Obtained from Nutrient Removal of Domestic Wastewater

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Abstract

In this study, a semi-continuous photobioreactor was operated for the investigation of nutrient removal efficiency of a unialgal culture, Chlorella vulgarıs. Maximum nitrogen and phosphorous removal efficiencies of 99.6 and 91.2 % were achieved in the photobioreactor. The microalgal slurry obtained from the effluent of the photobioreactor was subjected to biochemical methane potential assay, after application of heat, autoclave, and thermochemical pretreatments to improve anaerobic digestibility and biogas production. Evaluation of pretreatment options indicated that heat pretreatment is the most efficient method in terms of enhancing anaerobic digestibility, at the chemical oxygen demand (COD) loading of 19 ± 0.5 g L−1. This method increased the methane yield by 83.0 %, from 223 to 408 mL CH4 g VS −1added , compared to untreated microalgal slurry reactor with the same COD value. Among reactors with 35 ± 1.5 g L−1 initial COD concentration, autoclave-pretreated microalgal slurry was found to yield the highest methane value of 356 mL CH4 g VS −1added , which was 43.0 % higher than the value observed in the reactor fed with untreated microalgal slurry. The thermochemical pretreatment caused production of inhibitory compounds and resulted in lower biomethane production and COD treatment values, compared to untreated microalgae. Outcomes of this study reveal that coupled micro-algal and anaerobic biotechnology could be a sustainable alternative for integrated nutrient removal and biofuel production applications.

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Abbreviations

BM:

Basal medium

BMP:

Biochemical methane potential

CH4 :

Methane

COD:

Chemical oxygen demand

DO:

Dissolved oxygen

GC:

Gas chromatograph

HPLC:

High performance liquid chromatography

N:

Nitrogen

NaOH:

Sodium hydroxide

NH3 :

Free ammonia

NH4 + :

Ammonium ion

NH4 +-N:

Ammonium-nitrogen

NO3 − :

Nitrate ion

NO3 −-N:

Nitrate-nitrogen

OD:

Optical density

P:

Phosphorus

PAR:

Photosynthetically active radiation (nm)

PO4 3− :

Phosphate ion

PO4 3−-P:

Orthophosphate-phosphorus

sCOD:

Soluble chemical oxygen demand

SCP:

Semi-continuous cultivation photobioreactor

S/X:

Substrate-to-inoculum ratio

TAN:

Total ammonifiable nitrogen

tCOD:

Total chemical oxygen demand

TKN:

Total Kjeldahl nitrogen

TN:

Total nitrogen

TP:

Total phosphorus

TS:

Total solids

TSS:

Total suspended solids

VFA:

Volatile fatty acids

VDS:

Volatile dissolved solids

VS:

Volatile solids

VSS:

Volatile suspended solids

vvm:

Volume of gas per volume of broth per minute

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 16802, USA

    Ozgul Calicioglu

  2. Department of Environmental Engineering, Middle East Technical University, 06800, Ankara, Turkey

    Goksel N. Demirer

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  1. Ozgul Calicioglu
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  2. Goksel N. Demirer
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Correspondence to Goksel N. Demirer.

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Calicioglu, O., Demirer, G.N. Biogas Production from Waste Microalgal Biomass Obtained from Nutrient Removal of Domestic Wastewater. Waste Biomass Valor 7, 1397–1408 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12649-016-9546-9

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