Enhancing microalgal productivity and quality by different colored photobioreactors for biodiesel production using anaerobic reactor effluent

The present study emphasized the enhancement of microalgal productivity and quality (e.g., biochemical composition) using different colored photobioreactors (PBRs) exposed to ambient conditions. In this study, a unique approach had been applied to evaluate the microalgae co-culture (Chlorella vulgaris, Chlorella sorokiniana, and Scenedesmus simris002) growth by exposing the colored transparent photobioreactors (white, blue, and green) to sunlight using a nutrient-rich (N, P) anaerobic reactor effluent produced after the treatment of domestic wastewater. Experimental results suggested that the white PBR increased the microalgae productivity by 2.3 to 3.5 times than blue and green PBRs, respectively. In addition, the FTIR spectroscopy analysis showed better quality microalgae (i.e., higher IR spectra) produced in white PBR compared with that of blue and green PBRs, respectively. Moreover, the microalgae cultivated in white PBR also showed high lipid content (38%) with the dominant biodiesel FAME composition (C16-C18) of 68.6%.