The potential of Scenedesmus dimorphus microalgae for CO2 biofixation and lipid biosynthesis for bioenergy applications was evaluated in this study. Batch experiments were conducted using synthetic tertiary municipal wastewater samples at several nitrogen to phosphorus (NP) ratios (1 : 1 to 8 : 1) and CO2 concentrations (∼0%, 2%, 4%, and 6% CO2 in supplied air). Scenedesmus dimorphus was cultivated for 25 days and the growth is highly dependent on the CO2 concentration and the NP ratio. An NP ratio of 2 : 1 produces a biomass yield of 733 mg/L when the microalga culture was supplied with air enriched with 2% CO2 . The maximum CO2 biofixation rate of 49.6 mg L-1 d-1 is at an NP ratio of 8 : 1 with 4% CO2 . A colorimetric technique depending on sulpho-phospho-vanillin (SPV) was utilized for the determination of the intracellular lipid content. The highest lipid content of 31.6% as the dry weight of the biomass is at an NP ratio of 1 : 1 and 6% CO2 . These results indicate that supplementation of suitable CO2 with favorable NP ratio has a considerable effect on lipid accumulation in the microalgae Scenedesmus dimorphus biomass.
Keywords: Algal growth; CO2 Biofixation; Lipid accumulation; Microalgae biomass; Tertiary municipal wastewater.
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