Two-phase photoperiodic cultivation of algal-bacterial consortia for high biomass production and efficient nutrient removal from municipal wastewater

Abstract

This study investigated the photoperiodic effects on the biomass production and nutrient removal in the algal-bacterial wastewater treatment, under the following three conditions: (1) a natural 12h:12h LD cycle, (2) a dark-elongated 12h:60h LD cycle, and (3) a two-phase photoperiodic 12h:60h LD, followed by 12h:12h LD cycles. The two-phase photoperiodic operation showed the highest dry cell weight and lipid productivity (282.6mgL-1day-1, 71.4mgL-1day-1) and most efficient nutrient removals (92.3% COD, 95.8% TN, 98.1% TP). The genetic markers and sequencing analyses indicated rapid increments of bacteria, subsequent growths of Scenedesmus, and stabilized population balances between algae and bacteria. In addition, the two-phase photoperiod provided a higher potential for the algal-bacterial consortia to utilize various organic carbon substrates.