Uptake of sewage derived nitrogen by Ulva rigida (Chlorophyceae) in Bahía Nueva (Golfo Nuevo, Patagonia, Argentine)

Abstract

Uptake kinetics of nitrogen derived from sewage–seawater mixtures (2.5–20% v/v effluent) were determined in the laboratory for Ulva rigida (Chlorophyceae) native from Bahía Nueva (Golfo Nuevo, Patagonia, Argentine). In terms of nitrogen concentration, experimental enrichment levels varied between 53.7 and 362.3 μM of ammonium and between 0.77 and 6.21 μM of nitrate + nitrite. Uptake rates were fitted to the Michaelis–Menten equation, with the following kinetic parameters: ammonium: V_max = 591.2 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹, K _s=262.3 μM, nitrate + nitrite: V _max=12.9 μmol g⁻¹ h⁻¹, K _s=3.5 μM). Both nutrients were taken up simultaneously, but ammonium incorporation was faster in all cases. The results show a high capability of Ulva rigida to remove sewage-derived nitrogen from culture media. In the field, most of the nitrogen provided by the effluent would be tied up in algal biomass, supporting low nitrogen levels found at a short distance away from the source.