Applications of Algae for Wastewater Treatment

A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Wastewater Treatment and Reuse".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2022) | Viewed by 4391

Special Issue Editors

State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment, School of Environment, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150090, China
Interests: algae; anaerobic fermentation/digestion; energy and resource recovery; sludge treatment; biological treatment processes; advanced oxidation process
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
School of Water Conservancy and Civil Engineering, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, China
Interests: algae; biological wastewater treatment; bioelectrochemical system; emerging containments; anaerobic fermentation/digestion; energy and resource recovery
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are guest-editing a Special Issue of Water, titled “Applications of Algae for Wastewater Treatment.” Manuscripts will be selected through both invitation and open call.

The application of algae in wastewater treatment has been a significant focus of international research in recent decades. This is due to the potential of algae as biomass feedstock to produce biofuels and value-added products, and the possibility of combining algal cultivation with the removal of nutrients from wastewater. The use of algae-derived materials such as biochar to remove aqueous pollutants is also an emerging approach. Considering the rapid development in this field, this Special Issue aims to provide a platform for the exchange of current research status and future perspectives. We would like to invite you to submit original research and review articles to disseminate and share the new findings on algae applications in wastewater treatment.
Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:

  • Advances in the development of algal wastewater treatment technologies
  • New insights on nutrient removal and energy/resource recovery from wastewater
  • High-value products and biomedical applications
  • Applications of molecular biology and genetic engineering tools
  • Microalgae in bioelectrochemical systems
  • Advances in algal biochar
  • Life cycle assessment and techno-economic analysis

Prof. Dr. Hongyu Ren
Prof. Dr. Fanying Kong
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Water is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • microalgae/macroalgae/cyanobacteria
  • wastewater/sludge treatment
  • nutrient removal
  • biofuels
  • high-value products and co-products
  • energy/resource recovery
  • biochar
  • algal harvesting and extraction systems
  • bioreactor design and control
  • life cycle and modeling

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 2769 KiB  
Article
The Role of Turbulent Coherent Structures on Microalgal Mixing for Nutrient Removal in Jet and Paddlewheel Raceway Ponds
by Farhana Kayed, Sarik Salim, Jennifer J. Verduin and Navid R. Moheimani
Water 2022, 14(18), 2824; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/w14182824 - 10 Sep 2022
Viewed by 1575
Abstract
Outdoor studies were conducted on microalgae cultures in two raceway ponds (kept in constant motion with either jet or paddlewheel) with a flatbed to treat anaerobic digestion piggery effluent and to observe the characteristics of turbulence on microalgal mixing and growth. Acoustic Doppler [...] Read more.
Outdoor studies were conducted on microalgae cultures in two raceway ponds (kept in constant motion with either jet or paddlewheel) with a flatbed to treat anaerobic digestion piggery effluent and to observe the characteristics of turbulence on microalgal mixing and growth. Acoustic Doppler Velocimeters (ADV) were deployed to record the instantaneous velocity components and acoustic backscatter as a substitution of microalgae concentration. The present research on microalgal mixing considers the effect of event-based turbulent features such as the widely known ‘turbulent bursting’ phenomenon. This is an important aspect, as turbulent coherent structures can result in microalgal mixing, which can lead to significant changes in microalgal growth. The experimental results presented in this paper of two contrasting environments of jet- and paddlewheel-driven ponds suggested that: (1) turbulent bursting events significantly contributed to microalgal mixing when paddlewheels and jets were used; (2) among four type of turbulent bursting events, ejections and sweeps contributed more to the total microalgal mixing; and, (3) a correlation was revealed using wavelet transform between the momentum and microalgal mixing flux when either jet or paddlewheel were used. Such similarities in jet and paddlewheel raceway ponds highlight the need to introduce turbulent coherent structures as an essential parameter for microalgal mixing studies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Applications of Algae for Wastewater Treatment)
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10 pages, 1643 KiB  
Article
Eucalyptus Leaf Solution to Replace Metals in the Removal of Cyanobacteria in Wastewater from the Paper Mill Industry
by Zhewei Hu, Shu Jin, Rongrong Ying, Xiaohui Yang and Baoping Sun
Water 2021, 13(8), 1014; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/w13081014 - 08 Apr 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1609
Abstract
The frequent occurrence of cyanobacterial blooms, caused by the eutrophication of water bodies, has triggered several ecological issues. Metal-controlled cyanobacteria are resulting in a series of secondary environmental problems and thus limiting environmental sustainability. Whether there is a more environmentally friendly way to [...] Read more.
The frequent occurrence of cyanobacterial blooms, caused by the eutrophication of water bodies, has triggered several ecological issues. Metal-controlled cyanobacteria are resulting in a series of secondary environmental problems and thus limiting environmental sustainability. Whether there is a more environmentally friendly way to replace metals in the removal of cyanobacteria is still unclear. To explore whether common heavy metals inhibit algal growth and whether Eucalyptus leaves (EL) can replace heavy metal ions in controlling algae outbreaks, here, we add Fe3+, Al3+, 3 mol/L of zinc (Zn3), 10 mol/L zinc (Zn10), and EL to a medium containing Cyanobacteria. We determine the medium’s color (456 nm), UV (254 nm), chlorophyll a, turbidity, temperature, pH, total dissolved solids, conductivity, and blue-green algae (BGA) at days 1, 4, 7, 11, 14, 19, and 21. We find that Fe3+, Al3+, Zn3, Zn10, and EL can inhibit chlorophyll synthesis, thereby impeding algae biomass growth due to metal ions’ disruption of the chlorophyll structure. The toxicity of Zn2+ may be higher than that of Fe3+ and Al3+ since it can completely destroy the structure of chlorophyll a. The damage of Zn (10) to chlorophyll a is stronger than that of Zn (3), indicating that high concentrations of metals have a stronger inhibitory effect on algae. The toxicity of EL to algae is lower than that of other metals, but it can significantly inhibit the growth of algae. We suggest the use of Eucalyptus leaves to inhibit algal growth in eutrophic water bodies. Our results provide a scientific basis for an environmentally friendly approach to controlling cyanobacteria outbreaks. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Applications of Algae for Wastewater Treatment)
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