K.U. Leuven Kulak, Laboratory Aquatic Biology, E. Sabbelaan 53, 8500 Kortrijk, Belgium.
Bioresour Technol. 2012 Feb;105:114-9. doi: 10.1016/j.biortech.2011.11.105. Epub 2011 Dec 3.
Microalgae hold great potential as a feedstock for biofuels or bulk protein or treatment of wastewater or flue gas. Realising these applications will require the development of a cost-efficient harvesting technology. Here, we explore the potential of flocculation induced by high pH for harvesting Chlorella vulgaris. Our results demonstrate that flocculation can be induced by increasing medium pH to 11. Although both calcium and magnesium precipitated when pH was increased, only magnesium (≥0.15 mM) proved to be essential to induce flocculation. The costs of four different bases (sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, calcium hydroxide, magnesium hydroxide and sodium carbonate) were calculated and evaluated and the use of lime appeared to be the most cost-efficient. Flocculation induced by high pH is therefore a potentially useful method to preconcentrate freshwater microalgal biomass during harvesting.
微藻作为生物燃料、大宗蛋白质的原料或处理废水和烟道气的潜力巨大。要实现这些应用，需要开发一种经济高效的收获技术。在这里，我们探索了通过提高 pH 值诱导絮凝来收获普通小球藻的潜力。结果表明，通过将介质 pH 值提高到 11 可以诱导絮凝。虽然 pH 值升高时钙和镁都会沉淀，但只有镁（≥0.15mM）被证明是诱导絮凝所必需的。计算和评估了四种不同碱（氢氧化钠、氢氧化钾、氢氧化钙、氢氧化镁和碳酸钠）的成本，使用石灰似乎是最具成本效益的。因此，高 pH 值诱导的絮凝是在收获过程中预浓缩淡水微藻生物质的一种潜在有用的方法。
