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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Main Authors: Konstantinos P. Papadopoulos, Christina N. Economou, Athanasia G. Tekerlekopoulou, Dimitris V. Vayenas
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2020-12-01
Series:Applied Sciences
Subjects:
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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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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AT christinaneconomou acyanobacteriabasedbiofilmsystemforadvancedbrewerywastewatertreatment
AT athanasiagtekerlekopoulou acyanobacteriabasedbiofilmsystemforadvancedbrewerywastewatertreatment
AT dimitrisvvayenas acyanobacteriabasedbiofilmsystemforadvancedbrewerywastewatertreatment
AT konstantinosppapadopoulos cyanobacteriabasedbiofilmsystemforadvancedbrewerywastewatertreatment
AT christinaneconomou cyanobacteriabasedbiofilmsystemforadvancedbrewerywastewatertreatment
AT athanasiagtekerlekopoulou cyanobacteriabasedbiofilmsystemforadvancedbrewerywastewatertreatment
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