Potential of Mixed Algal Culture for Lipid Synthesis using Wastewater as a Nutrient Source

Abstract

Microalgae can be a good alternative source for wastewater treatment and lipid production owing to their ecofriendly photosynthetic approach. A comparative study was conducted between synthetic media and wastewater in which mixed algal culture (Scenedesmus obliquus, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii and Chlorella vulgaris) was grown. In this study, the growth of mixed algal culture and total lipid contents were analysed. Removal efficiency of nitrate, phosphate and chemical oxygen demand (COD) of mixed algal culture using wastewater as medium was found to be 68.1%, 84.36% and 78%, respectively, and for heavy metals like Zn, Pb, Fe, Cr and Cu, it ranged between 91% and 98%. The lipid content of mixed algal culture was observed to be 7.04%, 10.37% and 16.96% dcw in both synthetic media (BG-11 and BBM) and wastewater. Hence, it can be concluded from this study that synthetic media can be replaced by wastewater for growing mixed algal culture, which in turn can be used for biodiesel production.