Flocculation of cyanobacterial cells using coal fly ash modified chitosan

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) have increasingly occurred worldwide and pose serious threats to water environment safety. In this study, a compound flocculant (CFAL-Chitosan) was developed for HABs mitigation where chitosan was modified by coal fly ash leachate (CFAL). When using optimized dosage of CFAL-Chitosan flocculant, the zeta potential of Microcystis aeruginosa (M.A.) flocs stayed close to zero and algal removal efficiency plateaued over 90% in a wide dosage range from 3 to 6 mg L(-1). For chitosan without CFAL, removal efficiency peaked at 3 mg L(-1) with a maximum removal efficiency of 81%, which quickly decreased as the dosage increased (>3 mg L(-1)) due to the fast reversal of zeta potential. This indicated that CFAL-Chitosan could maintain a better removal efficiency over a wide dosage range as a result of improved charge neutralization compared with the chitosan only treatment. The flocs of CFAL-Chitosan were larger and denser than produced in the presence of chitosan without CFAL. However, excessive CFAL beyond the optimized dose inhibited M.A. removal due to hydrolysis and declining molecular weight of chitosan that weakened the bridging-netting properties, where surface charge reversal happened within a narrow dosage range and the removal-dosage curve became parabolic. The pH and metal residuals that were assumed to pose a threat to the aquatic environment were not significantly affected by adding optimized dosage of CFAL-Chitosan. The study provides a HABs control method using a cheap material of CFA. Further studies are needed to check the potential influence of leachable metals and persistent organic pollutants in CFA under a wide range of environmental condition.