title: Growth of microalgae Botryococcus sp. in domestic wastewater and application of statistical analysis for the optimization of flocculation using alum and chitosan.
abstract: Microalga biomass has been recognized as a sustainable bio-product to replace terrestrial biomass in biofuel production. The microalga industry has high operating costs, specifically on harvesting and biomass recovery. Therefore, the development of an efficient harvesting method is crucial to the minimization of production cost. A statistical analysis through response surface methodology was used to investigate the optimization of harvesting efficiency using alum and chitosan as a coagulant. Growth rate and biomass productivity were also determined. This research revealed that the harvesting efficiency using alum was 99.3%, with optimum dosage and pH of 177.74 mg L-1and 8.24, respectively. Chitosan achieved 94.2% biomass recovery at an optimal dosage of 169.95 mg L-1at pH of 12. Moreover, Botryococcus sp. achieved the maximum growth of 0.7551 µmaxd-1, with an average total biomass productivity of 9.81 mg L-1d-1in domestic wastewater. Overall, this study shows that both alum and chitosan coagulants have great potential for efficient microalgal biomass recovery. It suggests that domestic wastewater as a potential growth medium for the large-scale production of microalga biomass.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Water and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering , Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia , Johor , Malaysia.
authors.forename: Paran
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gani
authors.affiliation: b Department of Civil Engineering Technology, Faculty of Engineering Technology , Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia , Johor , Malaysia.
authors.forename: Norshuhaila
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Mohamed Sunar
authors.affiliation: c Department of Technology and Heritage, Faculty of Science, Technology, and Human Development , Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia , Johor , Malaysia.
authors.forename: Hazel
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Matias-Peralta
authors.affiliation: a Department of Water and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering , Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia , Johor , Malaysia.
authors.forename: Ab Aziz
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Abdul Latiff
authors.affiliation: c Department of Technology and Heritage, Faculty of Science, Technology, and Human Development , Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia , Johor , Malaysia.
authors.forename: Siti Fatimah Zaharah
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Mohamad Fuzi
mesh_terms: D000534:Alum Compounds / Q000737:chemistry*; D056804:Biofuels / Q000032:analysis; D018533:Biomass; D048271:Chitosan / Q000737:chemistry*; D000460:Chlorophyta / Q000254:growth & development*; D005427:Flocculation; D058086:Microalgae / Q000254:growth & development*; D062065:Wastewater / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D000534:Alum Compounds; D056804:Biofuels; D048271:Chitosan; D062065:Wastewater; C041524:aluminum sulfate
keywords: Alum; chitosan; flocculation; harvesting; microalga biomass; response surface methodology