Understanding pH and ionic strength effects on aluminum sulfate-induced microalgae flocculation

The objective of this study was to understand the effect of pH and ionic strength of aluminum sulfate on the flocculation of microalgae. It was found that changing pH and ionic strength influenced algal flocculation by changing the zeta potential of cells, which was described by the classical theory of Derjaguin, Landau, Verwey, and Overbeek (DLVO). For both algal species of Scenedesmus dimorphus and Nannochloropsis oculata, cells with lower total DLVO interaction energy had higher flocculation efficiency, indicating that the DLVO model was qualitatively accurate in predicting the flocculation of the two algae. However, the two algae responded differently to changing pH and ionic strength. The flocculation of N. oculata increased with increasing aluminum sulfate concentration and favored either low (pH 5) or high (pH 10) pH where cells had relatively low negative surface charges. For S. dimorphus, the highest flocculation was achieved at low ionic strength (1 μM) or moderate pH (pH 7.5) where cell surface charges were fully neutralized (zero zeta potential).