Dairy wastewater treatment using microalgae for potential biodiesel application

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate the biomass production and dairy wastewater treatment using Chlorella vulgaris. The results indicated that the maximum percentages of biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, suspended solids, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus removed were 85.61%, 80.62%, 29.10%, 85.47%, and 65.96%, respectively, in dairy effluent at 10 d. A maximum of 1.23 g/L dry biomass was obtained in 7 d. The biomass productivity was strongly influenced by the nutrient reduction in the dairy effluent. The biodiesel produced by the C. vulgaris in the dairy effluent was in good agreement with the American Society of Testing and Materials-D6751 and European Standards 14214 standards. Therefore, using dairy effluent for microalgal cultures could be a useful and practical strategy for an advanced, environmentally friendly treatment process.