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Chlorella vulgaris (SAG 211-12) biofilm formation capacity and proposal of a rotating flat plate photobioreactor for more sustainable biomass production

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Abstract

Difficulties and cost of suspended microalgal biomass harvest and processing can be overcome by cultivating microalgae as biofilms. In the present work, a new photoautotrophic biofilm photobioreactor, the rotating flat plate photobioreactor (RFPPB), was developed aiming at a cost-effective production of Chlorella vulgaris (SAG 211-12), a strain not frequently referred in the literature but promising for biofuel production. Protocols were developed for evaluating initial adhesion to different materials and testing the conditions for biofilm formation. Polyvinyl chloride substrate promoted higher adhesion and biofilm production, followed by polypropylene, polyethylene, and stainless steel. The new RFPPB was tested, aiming at optimizing incident light utilization, minimizing footprint area and simplifying biomass harvesting. Tests show that the photobioreactor is robust, promotes biofilm development, and has simple operation, small footprint, and easy biomass harvest. Biomass production (dry weight) under non-optimized conditions was 3.35 g m−2, and areal productivity was 2.99 g m−2 day−1. Lipid content was 10.3% (dw), with high PUFA content. These results are promising and can be improved by optimizing some operational parameters, together with evaluation of long-term photobioreactor maximum productivity.

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Acknowledgements

This work was financially supported by the Project FCT UID/EQU/00305/2013 and Project POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006939 (Laboratory for Process Engineering, Environment, Biotechnology and Energy – LEPABE funded by FEDER funds through COMPETE2020—Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização (POCI)—and by national funds through FCT—Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia—and partially supported also by the Strategic Funding UID/Multi/04423/2013 through national funds provided to CIIMAR (Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research) by FCT and European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), in the framework of the program PT2020.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Sciences, Department of Geoscience, Environment and Territory Management, University of Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, S/N, 4169-007, Porto, Portugal

    Miguel Melo

  2. Institute for Research and Innovation in Health, University of Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen, 4200-135, Porto, Portugal

    Sílvia Fernandes

  3. School of Health – Polytechnic of Porto (ESS-P. Porto), Rua Dr. António Bernardino de Almeida, 400, 4200-072, Porto, Portugal

    Sílvia Fernandes

  4. LEPABE, Faculty of Engineering of University of Porto (FEUP), Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal

    Nídia Caetano

  5. School of Engineering (ISEP), Polytechnic of Porto (P. Porto), Rua Dr. António Bernardino de Almeida 431, 4249-015, Porto, Portugal

    Nídia Caetano

  6. Faculty of Sciences, Department of Biology, University of Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, S/N, 4169-007, Porto, Portugal

    Maria Teresa Borges

  7. CIIMAR – Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research of the University of Porto, Novo Edifício do Terminal de Cruzeiros do Porto de Leixões, Avenida General Norton de Matos, S/N, 4450-208, Matosinhos, Portugal

    Maria Teresa Borges

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  1. Miguel Melo
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  2. Sílvia Fernandes
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  3. Nídia Caetano
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  4. Maria Teresa Borges
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Correspondence to Maria Teresa Borges.

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Melo, M., Fernandes, S., Caetano, N. et al. Chlorella vulgaris (SAG 211-12) biofilm formation capacity and proposal of a rotating flat plate photobioreactor for more sustainable biomass production. J Appl Phycol 30, 887–899 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-017-1290-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-017-1290-4

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