Chapter 18 - Biotreatment and production of value-added products from waste algal biomass

Abstract

The rapidly increasing world population and industrialization are causing severe threats to environment and public health. Therefore, various treatment methods are used to treat wastewater pollutants. These treatments require large chemicals, high energy, expensive operating costs, and complicated procedures as well as generate toxic sludge. Thus, innovative, clean, green, sustainable, and efficient tools are required to make it more efficient, feasible, and cost-effective. Algae can sustain environmental sustainability due to remediate wastewater pollutants, and most importantly, these produced biofuels and high value-added products. Algae can uptake nutrients, reduce global warming impact, treat wastewater pollutants, and produce biomass. Biomass converts into value-added products such as lubricants, fertilizer, bioplastic, biochar, proteins, paints, pigment polyunsaturated fatty acid, cosmetics, coatings and paper, and many biofuels like biodiesel, bioethanol, biohydrogen, and biogas. Technological and economic factors currently prevent the commercial use of algae, and optimal methods are required to minimize production costs. However, simultaneous use of green algae in treatment of wastewater as well as high value-added product production could be an economical approach to address these issues. This chapter discusses wastewater characteristics and toxic effects on the environment and public health. The use of algae in wastewater treatment and high value-added products production is discussed. Furthermore, it also discussed key issues, challenges, and future perspectives in algal-based treatment and value-added product production.