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Title: CULTIVATION OF ALGAE TO REMOVE NUTRIENTS FROM TREATED WASTEWATER
CULTIVATION OF ALGAE TO REMOVE NUTRIENTS FROM TREATED WASTEWATER

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Alise Zommere; Oskars Purmalis; Linards Klavins; Maris Klavins
10.5593/sgem2025/3.1/s11.11
10.5593/sgem2025/3.1
1314-2704
978-619-7603-81-1
English
25
3.1
• Prof. Dr. hab. oec. Baiba Rivza, LATVIA• Prof. DSc. Ildiko Tulbure, GERMANY• Prof. DSc. Oleksandr Trofymchuk, UKRAINE
Hydrology, Water Resources, and Climate Resilience
The Baltic Sea Region faces increasing pressure on water resources and ecosystems due to human activity, with nutrient rich treated wastewater discharges being a main cause of eutrophication. Combining algae-based nutrient removal with reclaimed wastewater reuse provides a sustainable solution to reduce pollution while allowing algal biomass recovery for further applications. Therefore, the aim of the study was to evaluate possibilities to use algae cultivation as a tool for nutrient removal from treated wastewaters. Asterarcys quadricellulare was grown for 9 days in reclaimed wastewater at different concentrations (20%, 50%, 100%), tap water, and algae broth as control. The highest nutrient removal was achieved in 100% reclaimed wastewater at 90% removal of nitrogen by day 5 and >99% removal of phosphate by day 4. Thus, high efficiency of algae cultivation as a tool of nutrient removal has been demonstrated. Asterarcys quadricellulare biomass can be considered as a valuable resource for diverse applications. Extraction of lipophilic compounds and followed profiling using gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection revealed high concentrations of heptacosene (14.6 ± 0.49 mg/g extract), 1-hexacosanol (12.7 ± 1.06 mg/g extract), and palmitic acid (11.7 ± 0.95 mg/g extract). These findings suggest good prospects to use cultivation of algae as a tool for reclaimed wastewater reuse with simultaneous removal of nutrients and efficient production of algal biomass as a resource of lipids with prospective use as fuel.
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This research was supported by Interreg Baltic Sea Region project #C016 “ReNutriWater - Closing local water circuits by recirculating nutrients and water and using them in nature”.
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https://doi.org/10.5593/sgem2025/3.1/s11.11
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CULTIVATION OF ALGAE TO REMOVE NUTRIENTS FROM TREATED WASTEWATER
Proceedings of 25th International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference SGEM 2025, Volume 25, Issue 3.1
25th International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference SGEM 2025, Volume 25, Issue 3.1, 29 June - 6 July, 2025
Proceedings Paper
STEF92 Technology
International Multidisciplinary Scientific GeoConference Surveying Geology and Mining Ecology Management, SGEM
SWS Scholarly Society; Acad Sci Czech Republ; Latvian Acad Sci; Polish Acad Sci; Russian Acad Sci; Serbian Acad Sci and Arts; Natl Acad Sci Ukraine; Natl Acad Sci Armenia; Sci Council Japan; European Acad Sci, Arts and Letters; Acad Fine Arts Zagreb Croatia; Croatian Acad Sci and Arts; Acad Sci Moldova; Montenegrin Acad Sci and Arts; Georgian Acad Sci; Acad Fine Arts and Design Bratislava; Russian Acad Arts; Turkish Acad Sci.
87-98
29 June - 6 July, 2025
website
10358
wastewater reuse, microalgae, nutrient removal

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