Enhancing biomass and lipid accumulation by a novel microalga for unsterilized piggery biogas slurry remediation.

Abstract

The cost and efficiency of an algal-BS treatment system are determined by the specific microalgal species and BS pretreatment method. This study examines the growth of a novel algae Chlorella sp. YSD-2 and the removal of nutrients from the BS using different pretreatment methods, including dilution ratio and sterilization. The highest biomass production (1.84 g L-1) was achieved in the 1:2 unsterilized biogas slurry, which was 2.03 times higher than that in the sterilized group, as well as higher lipid productivity (17.29 mg L-1 d-1). Nevertheless, the sterilized biogas slurry at a 1:1 dilution ratio exhibited the most notable nutrient-removal efficiency, with COD at 71.97%, TP at 91.32%, and TN at 88.80%. Additionally, the analysis of 16S rRNA sequencing revealed a significant alteration in the indigenous bacterial composition of the biogas slurry by microalgal treatment, with Proteobacteria and Cyanobacteria emerging as the predominant phyla, and unidentified_Cyanobacteria as the primary genus. These findings suggest that Chlorella sp. YSD-2 exhibits favorable tolerance and nutrient-removal capabilities in unsterilized, high-strength biogas slurry, along with high productivity of biomass and lipids. Consequently, these results offer a theoretical foundation for the development of an efficient and economically viable treatment method for algal-BS.