From piggery wastewater nutrients to biogas: Microalgae biomass revalorization through anaerobic digestion

Beatriz Molinuevo-Salces, Ahmed Mahdy, Mercedes Ballesteros and Cristina González-Fernández

Renewable Energy, 2016, vol. 96, issue PB, 1103-1110

Abstract: Microalgae grown in swine wastewater were used as a promising strategy to produce renewable energy by coupling wastewater bioremediation and biomass revalorization. The efficiency of a microalgae consortium treating swine slurry at different temperature (15 and 23 °C) and illumination periods (11 and 14 h) was assessed for biomass growth and nutrient removal at two NH4+ initial concentrations (80 and 250 mg L−1 NH4+). Favourable culture conditions (23 °C and 14 h of illumination) and high ammonium loads resulted in higher biomass production and greater nutrients removal rates. The initial N–NH4+ load determined the removal mechanism, thus ammonia stripping and nitrogen uptake accounted similarly in the case of high NH4+ load, while nitrogen uptake prevailed at low NH4+ load. Under favourable conditions, nitrogen availability in the media determined the composition of the biomass. In this context, carbohydrate-rich biomass was obtained in batch mode while semi-continuous operation resulted in protein-rich biomass. The revalorization of the resultant biomass was evaluated for biogas production. Methane yields in the range of 106–146 and 171 ml CH4 g COD−1 were obtained for the biomasses grown in batch and semi-continuous mode, respectively. Biomass grown under favourable conditions resulted in higher methane yields and closer to the theoretically achievable.

Keywords: Microalgae; Swine slurry; Nutrients; Recovery; Biogas (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (11)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:renene:v:96:y:2016:i:pb:p:1103-1110

DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2016.01.090

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