Characterization of a novel strain of Tribonema minus demonstrating high biomass productivity in outdoor raceway ponds

Aubrey K Davis; Ryan S Anderson; Ruth Spierling; Sara Leader; Carly Lesne; Kristina Mahan; Tryg Lundquist; John R Benemann; Todd Lane; Jürgen E W Polle

doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2021.125007

Characterization of a novel strain of Tribonema minus demonstrating high biomass productivity in outdoor raceway ponds

Bioresour Technol. 2021 Jul:331:125007. doi: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.125007. Epub 2021 Mar 18.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ MicroBio Engineering, Inc., San Luis Obispo, CA 9340, USA; Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA 93407, USA. Electronic address: AubreyDavis@microbioengineering.com.
² MicroBio Engineering, Inc., San Luis Obispo, CA 9340, USA; Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA 93407, USA.
³ Sandia National Laboratories, California, Livermore, USA.
⁴ Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA 93407, USA.
⁵ MicroBio Engineering, Inc., San Luis Obispo, CA 9340, USA.
⁶ MicroBio Engineering, Inc., San Luis Obispo, CA 9340, USA; Brooklyn College of the City University of New York, Brooklyn, NY 11210, USA; The Graduate Center of the City University of New York, New York, NY 10016, USA.

PMID: 33798856
DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.125007

Abstract

Photosynthetic algae represent a large, diverse bioresource potential. Yellow-green algae of the genus Tribonema are candidates for production of biofuels and other bioproducts. We report on a filamentous isolate from an outdoor raceway polyculture growing on municipal reclaimed wastewater which we classified as T. minus. Over one year of cultivation in 3.5 m² raceway ponds fed by reclaimed municipal wastewater, T. minus cultures were more productive than the native algal polycultures, with annual average productivities of 15.9 ± 0.3 and 13.4 ± 0.4 g/m²/day, respectively. The biochemical composition of T. minus biomass grown outdoors was constant year-round, with 28.3 ± 0.4% carbohydrates, 37.6 ± 0.7% proteins, and 6.1 ± 0.3% fatty acids (measured as methyl esters), with up to 4.0% of the valuable omega-3 eicosapentaenoic acid, on an ash-free dry-weight basis. In summary, T. minus was more productive, easier to harvest and produced higher quality biomass than the native polycultures.

Keywords: Algae; Biofuels; Biomass production; Outdoor cultivation; Reclaimed wastewater; Tribonema minus.

MeSH terms

Biofuels
Biomass
Microalgae*
Ponds
Stramenopiles*

Substances

Biofuels