Bioremediation of industrial/municipal wastewaters by microalgae-plant growth promoting bacteria consortia, coupled with commercial metabolites production from the biomass

Abstract

Microalgae cultivation coupled with wastewater treatment could be the optimal process approach in freshwater management. The management of agricultural ‘wastes’ in a manner that maximizes the nutrient recovery and microalgal biomass production could be an alternative agricultural enterprise, especially where management practices are not currently in place (Fenton and Ó hUallacháin, 2012). Engineered consortia of microalgae-bacteria have a great potential for the removal of both nitrogen and phosphorus compounds and also organic carbon ones.

In this study, two microalgae, namely Scenedesmus dimorphus and Chlorella pyrenoidosa, were successfully co-cultured with the plant growth promoting bacteria Azospirillum brasilense in mixtures of two effluents from the dairy industry, such as raw liquid cow manure and second cheese whey, without any sterilization or dilution, from laboratory conditions up to the scale of open ponds.