Microalgae as a sustainable approach for municipal wastewater treatment: insights into nutrient removal, lipid accumulation, and biofuel potential

Saeeda Jamal, Fazli Malik Sarim, Fida Hussain, Khursheed Ur Rahman, Ghulam Mujtaba Shah, Muhammad Fiaz, Farah Mabood, Fozia Shafiq

Abstract


Microalgae have recently emerged as promising agents for municipal wastewater treatment due to their rapid growth, efficient nutrient uptake, and simultaneous production of valuable bio-based products. This study evaluated the potential of microalgal strains isolated from freshwater and wastewater habitats in Peshawar, Pakistan, for the removal of total organic carbon (TOC), nitrogen, phosphorus, chemical oxygen demand (COD), and ammonia from concentrated municipal wastewater (CMWW). A total of 21 microalgal strains were successfully cultured in Blue-Green 11 (BG-11) medium. Among these, twelve facultative species viz., Chlorella vulgaris, C. ellipsoidea, Chlorococcum humicola, Scenedesmus bijuga, Botryococcus braunii, S. perforatus, Spirogyra aequinoctialis, S. armatus, S. setiformis, S. pratensis, Oscillatoria chalybea, and O. sancta exhibited stable ecological performance in CMWW with high growth rates and biomass productivity. C. vulgaris and C. ellipsoidea recorded the highest specific growth rates (0.373 ± 0.001 d⁻¹ and 0.362 ± 0.001 d⁻¹, respectively), whereas O. chalybea and O. sancta showed comparatively lower growth rates. During a six-day batch culture, C. vulgaris achieved removal efficiencies of 96% for nitrate, 77.7% for phosphate, 90% for ammonia, 95.5% for TOC, and 95.4% for COD. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis revealed that C. vulgaris had the highest lipid content (28.8%), while O. chalybea had the lowest (11.2%). The polyunsaturated fatty acid content in Chlorella species and S. armatus exceeded 30%, indicating their strong potential for biofuel production. Overall, the study demonstrates that wastewater treatment using microalgae represents an environmentally sustainable approach to waste management while simultaneously generating value-added bioproducts.


Keywords


Microalgae, Nutrient uptake, Chlorella vulgaris, Wastewater treatment, Biomass productivity, Polyunsaturated fatty acids, Biofuel production

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References


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DOI: https://doi.org/10.33804/pp.009.04.5813

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