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Author Spotlight: Scaling Microalgal Biotechnology for Enhanced Biomethane Production
Published on: March 22, 2024
Advanced nutrient removal from surface water by a consortium of attached microalgae and bacteria: A review
Junzhuo Liu1, Yonghong Wu1, Chenxi Wu2
1State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 71 East Beijing Road, Nanjing 210008, China.
Abstract:
Innovative and cost-effective technologies for advanced nutrient removal from surface water are urgently needed for improving water quality. Conventional biotechnologies, such as ecological floating beds, or constructed wetlands, are not effective in removing nutrients present at low-concentration. However, microalgae-bacteria consortium is promising for advanced nutrient removal from wastewater. Suspended algal-bacterial systems can easily wash out unless the hydraulic retention time is long, attached microalgae-bacteria consortium is more realistic. This critical review summarizes the fundamentals and status of attached microalgae-bacteria consortium for advanced nutrient removal from surface water. Key advantages are the various nutrient removal pathways, reduction of nutrients to very low concentration, and diversified photobioreactor configurations. Challenges include poor identification of functional species, poor control of the community composition, and long start-up times. Future research should focus on the selection and engineering of robust microbial species, mathematical modelling of the composition and functionality of the consortium, and novel photobioreactor configurations.
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