Co-cultivation of microalgae in aquaculture water: Interactions, growth and nutrient removal efficiency at laboratory- and pilot-scale

Prospective technical and technological insights into microalgae production using aquaculture wastewater effluents

Microalgae biomass is a promising resource addressing climate change and play a role in energy transition for generating biofuels. Due to their ability to produce higher yield per year, biofuels obtained from microalgae are considered 3rd generation-advanced biofuels. The industrial production of microalgae mitigates the effects of CO2 emissions and can be used for wastewater bioremediation since most effluents are rich in nutrients. Using wastewater as growth media for microalgae promotes the principles of circular economy and nutrient recovery. The aquaculture wastewater effluent contains high levels of nitrogenous compounds, as well as phosphates and dissolved organic carbon. The current review aims to identify, centralize, and provide extensive information on the decisive technological and technical factors involved in the growth process of different microalgae species in aquaculture wastewater. The study focuses on technological growth performance indicators, as well as specific control strategies applied to achieve pH control, since it has been highlighted to be one of the most important growth-related cofactors. A bibliometric framework was developed to identify future trends in integrated microalgae production. The scientific literature analysis highlighted the great potential of aquaculture wastewater effluents to be used as growth media for microalgae biomass production, due to superior performance in lipid and carbohydrate productivity. Most control strategies developed for microalgae production systems found in the literature aim at controlling the pH in the bioreactor by injecting CO2, while few other papers consider manipulating the dissolved oxygen. The need for higher-level control arises to not only track pH or DO references but also to maximize the treatment efficiency of the bioreactor.

Achieving a Biocircular Economy in the Aquaculture Sector Through Waste Valorization

Aquaculture wastewater treatment not only assists in alleviating the scarcity of clean water for daily usage and environmental pollution, but also generates valuable byproducts. This paper aims to review the generation of wastewater from the aquaculture sector, its characteristics, and available treatment technologies, while comprehensively discussing the adoption of a biocircular economy approach through waste valorization. With rich nutrients, such as nitrogenous compounds, and the presence of phosphorus in the aquaculture effluent, these aspects could be explored and valorized into biofertilizers, broadening their application in aquaponics and hydroponics, as well as in algae and daphnid cultivation. Biofertilizer can also be used in agriculture because it contains essential elements needed by plants. Thus, methods of converting nutrients into biofertilizers in terms of sludge recovery can be accomplished via anaerobic and aerobic digestion, drying, composting, and vermicomposting. Moving forward, aquaculture effluent recovery is addressed under the biocircular economy by re-engaging aquaculture wastewater effluents into the production cycle. The enhancement of aquaculture effluents and biomass for uses such as aquaponics, hydroponics, algae cultivation, daphnid co-cultivation, and biofertilizers presents valuable opportunities for nutrient recovery while ensuring that non-toxic wastewater can be safely discharged into external water bodies. This approach has the potential to revolutionize wastewater treatment in aquaculture, shifting the economic model of wastewater management from a linear system to a circular, more sustainable one.

Review of recent advances in utilising aquaculture wastewater for algae cultivation and microalgae-based bioproduct recovery

Aquaculture operations produce large amounts of wastewater contaminated with organic matter, nitrogenous compounds, and other emerging contaminants; when discharged into natural water bodies, it could result in ecological problems and severely threaten aquatic habitats and human health. However, using aquaculture wastewater in biorefinery systems is becoming increasingly crucial as advancements in valuable bioproduct production continue to improve economic feasibility. Research on utilising microalgae as an alternative to producing biomass and removing nutrients from aquaculture wastewater has been extensively studied over the past decades. Microalgae have the potential to use carbon dioxide (CO2) effectively and significantly reduce carbon footprint, and the harvested biomass can also be used as aquafeed. Furthermore, aquaculture wastewater enriched with phosphorus (P) is a potential resource for P recovery for the production of biofertiliser. This will reduce the P supply shortage and eliminate the environmental consequences of eutrophication. In this context, the present review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current state of the art in a generation, as well as the characteristics and environmental impact of aquaculture wastewater reported by the most recent research. Furthermore, the review synthesized recent developments in algal biomass cultivation using aquaculture wastewater and its utilisation as biorefinery feedstocks for producing value-added products, such as aquafeeds, bioethanol, biodiesel, biomethane, and bioenergy. This integrated process provides a sustainable method for recovering biomass and water, fully supporting the framework of a circular economy in aquaculture wastewater treatment via resource recovery.

Ciliate diversity and growth rates in experimental recirculating aquaculture and aquaponics systems using microscopy

The function of recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) relies on microbial communities, which convert toxic, fish-excreted ammonia into substances that can provide nutrients to plants as in the case of aquaponics systems. In the present study, heterotrophic protist communities of experimental sea water RAS and freshwater aquaponics systems were investigated using microscopy to characterize their diversity, natural abundance, and potential growth rates. Heterotrophic protist abundance was low (732 ± 21 to 5451 ± 118 ciliates L-1 and 58 ± 8 to 147 ± 18 nanoflagellates mL-1 in the aquaponics system and 78 ± 28 to 203 ± 48 ciliates L-1 in the RAS), which is in line with values typically reported for rivers. In the aquaponics system, ciliates grew faster in the fish rearing tanks (1.9 ± 0.01 to 1.21 ± 0.03 d-1 compared to 0.54 ± 0.03 to 0.79 ± 0.05 d-1 in the other compartments), while heterotrophic nanoflagellates grew slower in drain tanks downstream of the hydroponics compartment (0.5 ± 0.3 to 1.37 ± 0.05 d-1 and 4.09 ± 0.11 d-1 to 6.03 ± 0.34 d-1in the other compartments). Results indicated distinct niches and reduced microeukaryotic diversity at the end of the system's operation cycle.

The influence of light intensities and micropollutants on the removal of total coliforms and E. coli from wastewater in a flat-panel photobioreactor

The presence of micropollutants and pathogens in sanitary wastewater and surface water is a growing concern that impacts public health, environmental balance and the maintenance of water supply services. To improve sanitary wastewater treatment, it is necessary to develop and improve sustainable technologies. Among the available options, microalgae-based systems stand out for their efficiency and generation of value-added byproducts. To study the impact of luminosity and the presence of micropollutants (13 selected) on the removal of E. coli and total coliforms from real anaerobically treated wastewater, a pilot flat-panel photobioreactor (50 L) was operated in batch mode in a tropical climate region. This is the first study to evaluate whether micropollutants interfere with coliform groups, considering a microalgae-based system and an experiment in a tropical climate region. E. coli had better removal (from 104 to 101 CFU 100 mL-1) than did total coliforms (from 104 to 103 CFU 100 mL-1). The removal of E. coli was more strongly linked to luminosity and temperature, while the removal of total coliforms was influenced by the presence of the selected micropollutants.

Nutrient removal and biomass production of marine microalgae cultured in recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) water with low phosphate concentration

This study was conducted to investigate the feasibility of microalgal biomass production and nutrient removal from recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) water (RASW) with low phosphate concentration. For this purpose, Nannochloropsis oculata, Pavlova gyrans, Tetraselmis suecica, Phaeodactylum tricornutum, and their consortium were cultivated in RASW and RASW supplemented with vitamins (+V). Among them, N. oculata showed the maximum biomass production of 0.4 g/L in RASW. Vitamins supplementation significantly increased the growth of T. suecica from 0.16 g/L in RASW to 0.33 g/L in RASW + V. Additionally, T. suecica showed the highest nitrate (NO3-N) removal efficiency of 80.88 ± 2.08 % in RASW and 83.82 ± 2.08 % in RASW + V. Accordingly, T. suecica was selected for scaling up study of microalgal cultivation in RASW and RASW supplemented with nitrate (RASW + N) in 4-L airlift photobioreactors. Nitrate supplementation enhanced the growth of T. suecica up to 2.2-fold (day 15). The fatty acid nutritional indices in T. suecica cultivated in RASW and RASW + N showed optimal polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs)/saturated fatty acid (SFAs), omega-6 fatty acid (n-6)/omega-3 fatty acid (n-3), indices of atherogenicity (IA), and thrombogenicity (IT)). Overall, the findings of this study revealed that despite low phosphate concentration, marine microalgae can grow in RASW and relatively reduce the concentration of nitrate. Furthermore, the microalgal biomass cultivated in RASW consisting of pigments and optimal fatty acid nutritional profile can be used as fish feed, thus contributing to a circular bioeconomy.

Simultaneous photoautotrophic production of DHA and EPA by Tisochrysis lutea and Microchloropsis salina in co-culture

Marine microalgae have received much attention as a sustainable source of the two health beneficial omega-3-fatty acids docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, C22:6) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, C20:5). However, photoautotrophic monocultures of microalgae can only produce either DHA or EPA enriched biomass. An alternative may be the photoautotrophic co-cultivation of Tisochrysis lutea as DHA-producer with Microchloropsis salina for simultaneous EPA production to obtain EPA- and DHA-rich microalgae biomass in a nutritionally balanced ratio. Photoautotrophic co-cultivation processes of T. lutea and M. salina were studied, applying scalable and fully controlled lab-scale gas-lift flat-plate photobioreactors with LED illumination for dynamic climate simulation of a repeated sunny summer day in Australia [day-night cycles of incident light (PAR) and temperature]. Monocultures of both marine microalgae were used as reference batch processes. Differences in the autofluorescence of both microalgae enabled the individual measurement, of cell distributions in co-culture, by flow cytometry. The co-cultivation of T. lutea and M. salina in artificial sea water with an inoculation ratio of 1:3 resulted in a balanced biomass production of both microalgae simultaneously with a DHA:EPA ratio of almost 1:1 (26 mgDHA gCDW-1, and 23 mgEPA gCDW-1, respectively) at harvest after depletion of the initially added fertilizer. Surprisingly, more microalgae biomass was produced within 8 days in co-cultivation with an increase in the cell dry weight (CDW) concentration by 31%, compared to the monocultures with the same amount of light and fertilizer. What is more, DHA-content of the microalgae biomass was enhanced by 33% in the co-culture, whereas EPA-content remained unchanged compared to the monocultures.

Recent advances on microalgae cultivation for simultaneous biomass production and removal of wastewater pollutants to achieve circular economy

Microalgae are known for containing high value compounds and its significant role in sequestering carbon dioxide. This review mainly focuses on the emerging microalgae cultivation technologies such as nanomaterials technology that can improve light distribution during microalgae cultivation, attached cultivation and co-cultivation approaches that can improve growth and proliferation of algal cells, biomass yield and lipid accumulation in microalgal. This review includes a comprehensive discussion on the use of microbubbles technology to enhance aerated bubble capacity in photobioreactor to improve microalgal growth. This is followed by discussion on the role of microalgae as phycoremediation agent in removal of contaminants from wastewater, leading to better water quality and high productivity of shellfish. The review also includes techno-economic assessment of microalgae biorefinery technology, which is useful for scaling up the microalgal biofuel production system or integrated microalgae-shellfish cultivation system to support circular economy.

Research advancement and commercialization of microalgae edible oil: a review

The global food crisis has led to a great deal of attention being given to microalgal oil as a sustainable natural food source. This article provides an overview of the progress and future directions in promoting the commercialization of microalgal edible oils, including microalgal triglyceride accumulation, suitable edible oil culture strategies for high nutritional value, metabolic engineering, production, and downstream technologies. The integration of the production process, biosafety, and the economic sustainability of microalgal oil production are analyzed for their critical roles in the commercialization of microalgal edible oil to provide a theoretical and scientific basis for the comprehensive development and utilization of microalgal edible oil. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

Improving the feasibility of aquaculture feed by using microalgae

The aquaculture industry is an efficient edible protein producer and grows faster than any other food sector. Therefore, it requires enormous amounts of fish feed. Fish feed directly affects the quality of produced fish, potential health benefits, and cost. Fish meal (FM), fis oil (FO), and plant-based supplements, predominantly used in fish feed, face challenges of low availability, low nutritional value, and high cost. The cost associated with aquaculture feed represents 40-75% of aquaculture production cost and one of the key market drivers for the thriving aquaculture industry. Microalgae are a primary producer in aquatic food chains. Microalgae are expanding continuously in renewable energy, pharmaceutical pigment, wastewater treatment, food, and feed industries. Major components of microalgal biomass are proteins with essential amino acids, lipids with polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), carbohydrates, pigments, and other bioactive compounds. Thus, microalgae can be used as an essential, viable, and alternative feed ingredient in aquaculture feed. In recent times, live algae culture, whole algae, and lipid-extracted algae (LEA) have been tested in fish feed for growth, physiological activity, and nutritional value. The present review discusses the potential application of microalgae in aquaculture feed, its mode of application, nutritional value, and possible replacement of conventional feed ingredients, and disadvantages of plant-based feed. The review also focuses on integrated processes such as algae cultivation in aquaculture wastewater, aquaponics systems, challenges, and future prospects of using microalgae in the aquafeed industry.

Food Ingredients and Nutraceuticals from Microalgae: Main Product Classes and Biotechnological Production

Microalgal products are an emerging class of food, feed, and nutraceuticals. They include dewatered or dried biomass, isolated pigments, and extracted fat. The oil, protein, and antioxidant-rich microalgal biomass is used as a feed and food supplement formulated as pastes, powders, tablets, capsules, or flakes designed for daily use. Pigments such as astaxanthin (red), lutein (yellow), chlorophyll (green), or phycocyanin (bright blue) are natural food dyes used as isolated pigments or pigment-rich biomass. Algal fat extracted from certain marine microalgae represents a vegetarian source of n-3-fatty acids (eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), γ-linolenic acid (GLA)). Gaining an overview of the production of microalgal products is a time-consuming task. Here, requirements and options of microalgae cultivation are summarized in a concise manner, including light and nutrient requirements, growth conditions, and cultivation systems. The rentability of microalgal products remains the major obstacle in industrial application. Key challenges are the high costs of commercial-scale cultivation, harvesting (and dewatering), and product quality assurance (toxin analysis). High-value food ingredients are commonly regarded as profitable despite significant capital expenditures and energy inputs. Improvements in capital and operational costs shall enable economic production of low-value food products going down to fishmeal replacement in the future economy.

Enhancement of Biomass Production in Colony-Forming Green Algae, Botryosphaerella sudetica, Under Mixotrophic Cultivation

In this study, we characterized the potential of colony-forming green algae, Botryosphaerella sudetica KNUA107, isolated from Ulleung Island, South Korea, as a bioresource and analyzed the effects of mixotrophic cultivation on its bioresource production efficiency. Internal transcribed spacer (ITS) (ITS1, 5.8S, and ITS2), ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase large subunit (rbcL), and elongation factor Tu (tufa) regions were used for molecular identification and phylogenetic analysis. B. sudetica KNUA107 had a strong relationship with the green algae of Botryococcus and Botryosphaerella genera, which are colony-forming species, and was also associated with members of the Neochloris genus. To improve biomass productivity, we tested mixotrophic cultivation conditions using several organic carbon sources. Glucose supplementation stimulated B. sudetica KNUA107 growth and reduced the time needed to reach the stationary phase. In addition, the colony size was 1.5–2.0 times larger with glucose than in photoautotrophic cultures, and settleability improved in proportion to colony size. The total lipid content and biomass productivity were also higher in cultures supplemented with glucose. Among the lipid components, saturated fatty acids and monounsaturated fatty acids had the highest proportion. Our study suggests that B. sudetica KNUA107, which has enhanced efficiency in biomass production and lipid components under mixotrophic cultivation, has high potential as a bioresource.