A Cyanobacteria-Based Biofilm System for Advanced Brewery Wastewater Treatment
Algal/cyanobacterial biofilm photobioreactors provide an alternative technology to conventional photosynthetic systems for wastewater treatment based on high biomass production and easy biomass harvesting at low cost. This study introduces a novel cyanobacteria-based biofilm photobioreactor and asse...
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MDPI AG
2020-12-01
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Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/1/174 |
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author | Konstantinos P. Papadopoulos Christina N. Economou Athanasia G. Tekerlekopoulou Dimitris V. Vayenas |
author_facet | Konstantinos P. Papadopoulos Christina N. Economou Athanasia G. Tekerlekopoulou Dimitris V. Vayenas |
author_sort | Konstantinos P. Papadopoulos |
collection | DOAJ |
description | Algal/cyanobacterial biofilm photobioreactors provide an alternative technology to conventional photosynthetic systems for wastewater treatment based on high biomass production and easy biomass harvesting at low cost. This study introduces a novel cyanobacteria-based biofilm photobioreactor and assesses its performance in post-treatment of brewery wastewater and biomass production. Two different supporting materials (glass/polyurethane) were tested to investigate the effect of surface hydrophobicity on biomass attachment and overall reactor performance. The reactor exhibited high removal efficiency (over 65%) of the wastewater’s pollutants (chemical oxygen demand, nitrate, nitrite, ammonium, orthophosphate, and total Kjeldahl nitrogen), while biomass per reactor surface reached 13.1 and 12.8 g·m<sup>−2</sup> corresponding to 406 and 392 mg·L<sup>−1</sup> for glass and polyurethane, respectively, after 15 days of cultivation. The hydrophilic glass surface favored initial biomass adhesion, although eventually both materials yielded complete biomass attachment, highlighting that cell-to-cell interactions are the dominant adhesion mechanism in mature biofilms. It was also found that the biofilm accumulated up to 61% of its dry weight in carbohydrates at the end of cultivation, thus making the produced biomass a suitable feedstock for bioethanol production. |
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format | Article |
id | doaj.art-8b60b439a791422bbe9925236dd169dc |
institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
issn | 2076-3417 |
language | English |
last_indexed | 2024-03-10T13:44:40Z |
publishDate | 2020-12-01 |
publisher | MDPI AG |
record_format | Article |
series | Applied Sciences |
spelling | doaj.art-8b60b439a791422bbe9925236dd169dc2023-11-21T02:43:07ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172020-12-0111117410.3390/app11010174A Cyanobacteria-Based Biofilm System for Advanced Brewery Wastewater TreatmentKonstantinos P. Papadopoulos0Christina N. Economou1Athanasia G. Tekerlekopoulou2Dimitris V. Vayenas3Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Patras, Rio, GR-26504 Patras, GreeceDepartment of Chemical Engineering, University of Patras, Rio, GR-26504 Patras, GreeceDepartment of Environmental Engineering, University of Patras, 2 G. Seferi Str., GR-30100 Agrinio, GreeceDepartment of Chemical Engineering, University of Patras, Rio, GR-26504 Patras, GreeceAlgal/cyanobacterial biofilm photobioreactors provide an alternative technology to conventional photosynthetic systems for wastewater treatment based on high biomass production and easy biomass harvesting at low cost. This study introduces a novel cyanobacteria-based biofilm photobioreactor and assesses its performance in post-treatment of brewery wastewater and biomass production. Two different supporting materials (glass/polyurethane) were tested to investigate the effect of surface hydrophobicity on biomass attachment and overall reactor performance. The reactor exhibited high removal efficiency (over 65%) of the wastewater’s pollutants (chemical oxygen demand, nitrate, nitrite, ammonium, orthophosphate, and total Kjeldahl nitrogen), while biomass per reactor surface reached 13.1 and 12.8 g·m<sup>−2</sup> corresponding to 406 and 392 mg·L<sup>−1</sup> for glass and polyurethane, respectively, after 15 days of cultivation. The hydrophilic glass surface favored initial biomass adhesion, although eventually both materials yielded complete biomass attachment, highlighting that cell-to-cell interactions are the dominant adhesion mechanism in mature biofilms. It was also found that the biofilm accumulated up to 61% of its dry weight in carbohydrates at the end of cultivation, thus making the produced biomass a suitable feedstock for bioethanol production.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/1/174<i>Leptolyngbya</i> sp.attached growthbrewery wastewatercarbohydratesbioremediationsupporting materials |
spellingShingle | Konstantinos P. Papadopoulos Christina N. Economou Athanasia G. Tekerlekopoulou Dimitris V. Vayenas A Cyanobacteria-Based Biofilm System for Advanced Brewery Wastewater Treatment Applied Sciences <i>Leptolyngbya</i> sp. attached growth brewery wastewater carbohydrates bioremediation supporting materials |
title | A Cyanobacteria-Based Biofilm System for Advanced Brewery Wastewater Treatment |
title_full | A Cyanobacteria-Based Biofilm System for Advanced Brewery Wastewater Treatment |
title_fullStr | A Cyanobacteria-Based Biofilm System for Advanced Brewery Wastewater Treatment |
title_full_unstemmed | A Cyanobacteria-Based Biofilm System for Advanced Brewery Wastewater Treatment |
title_short | A Cyanobacteria-Based Biofilm System for Advanced Brewery Wastewater Treatment |
title_sort | cyanobacteria based biofilm system for advanced brewery wastewater treatment |
topic | <i>Leptolyngbya</i> sp. attached growth brewery wastewater carbohydrates bioremediation supporting materials |
url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/1/174 |
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