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Updated: Jul 9, 2025

Microalgae Cultivation and Biomass Quantification in a Bench-Scale Photobioreactor with Corrosive Flue Gases
Published on: December 19, 2019
Nitrogen and phosphorus removal performance of sequential batch operation for algal cultivation through
Han Yan1, Zhuo Chen2, Huu Hao Ngo3
1Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control State Key Joint Laboratory, State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Microorganism Application and Risk Control (SMARC), School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China.
Abstract:
Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) absorbed by algae in the suspended-solid phase photobioreactor (ssPBR) have emerged as an efficient pathway to purify the effluent of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). However, the key operational parameters of the ssPBR need to be optimized. In this study, the stability of the system after sequential batch operations and the efficiency under various influent P concentrations were evaluated. The results demonstrated that the ssPBR maintained a high N/P removal efficiency of 96 % and 98 %, respectively, after 5 cycles. When N was kept at 15 mg/L and P ranged from 1.5 to 3.0 mg/L, the system yielded plenty of algae products and guaranteed the effluent quality that met the discharge standards. Notably, the carriers were a key contributor to the high metabolism of algae and high performance. This work provided theoretical ideas and technical guidance for effluent quality improvement in WWTPs.

