BioEnergy Research

, Volume 8, Issue 4, pp 1647–1660 | Cite as

Dairy Wastewaters for Algae Cultivation, Polyhydroxyalkanote Reactor Effluent Versus Anaerobic Digester Effluent

  • Maxine Passero
  • Ben Cragin
  • Erik R. Coats
  • Armando G. McDonald
  • Kevin Feris
Article
First Online:

Abstract

Nutrients in dairy wastewaters can be remediated through assimilation into algal biomass. Anaerobically digested manure creates an effluent (ADE) that is useful for algal cultivation while alternate processing of manure through a polyhydroxyalkanoate reactor generates a distinct effluent (PHAE), not previously characterized for algal cultivation. Each effluent was evaluated for growth rate, biomass production, and nutrient recovery using type algae species Chlorella vulgaris. Growth rates were elevated in 5, 10, and 20 % dilutions of PHAE (0.59, 0.53, 0.42 days−1) compared to equal concentrations of ADE (0.40, 0.36, 0.37 days−1). In addition, the growth phase lasted up to twice as long for PHAE, resulting in a fourfold higher stationary phase algal concentration (cells∙mL−1) compared to ADE. Growth in ADE was limited by specific inhibitory properties: high concentrations of dissolved organic matter, ammonia, and elevated bacterial load. Maximum nutrient removal rates for ADE and PHAE were 0.95 and 3.46 mg·L−1·day−1 for nitrogen and 0.67 and 0.04 mg·L−1·day−1 for phosphorus, respectively. Finally, biomass derived from PHAE was higher in lipids (11.3 % versus 7.2 %) and thus has a greater potential as a feedstock for biofuel compared to ADE.

Keywords

Algae Biofuel Dairy wastewater Anaerobic digester Polyhydroxyalkanoate 

Abbreviations

AD

Anaerobic digester

ADE

Anaerobic digester effluent

CFU

Colony forming unit

CH4

Methane

COD

Chemical oxygen demand

CO2e

Carbon dioxide equivalent

DOM

Dissolved organic matter

EROI

Energy return on investment

GHG

Greenhouse gas

N

Nitrogen

NH3

Ammonia

NO3–

Nitrate

PHA

Polyhydroxyalkanoate

PHAE

Polyhydroxyalkanoate reactor effluent

P

Phosphorus

RFS

Renewable fuel standard

SD

Standard deviation

TDP

Total dissolved phosphorus

TDN

Total dissolved nitrogen

TS

Total solids

VFA

Volatile fatty acid

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Notes

Acknowledgments

This research was funded in part by the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) and the Center for Advanced Energy Studies (CAES), 00041394 Task Order 33. Additional funding was provided by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Science to Achieve Results (STAR) graduate fellowship, 2011–2013. FP-91736101, and the United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA-NIFA) award number 2012–68002–19952.

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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2015

Authors and Affiliations

  • Maxine Passero
    • 1
  • Ben Cragin
    • 1
  • Erik R. Coats
    • 2
  • Armando G. McDonald
    • 3
  • Kevin Feris
    • 1
  1. 1.Department of Biological SciencesBoise State UniversityBoiseUSA
  2. 2.Department of Civil EngineeringUniversity of IdahoMoscowUSA
  3. 3.Department of Forest, Rangeland and Fire SciencesUniversity of IdahoMoscowUSA

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