Use of a mixed algal culture to characterize industrial wastewaters.

A mixture of five freshwater algae was cultivated with additions of wastewater samples from chemical, mining, polyvinylchloride, textile, paper mill, and oil refinery industries. Two water samples from chemical industries and one from an oil refinery stimulated the algal growth in a nutrient-poor medium, while growth in other samples, including a nutrient-rich medium, was inhibited in several different ways. For eight of the water samples a delayed growth of 2-4 days was noted. Decreased growth rate and lowered maximal biomass occurred in seven of the samples. The photosynthetic capacity of the algal cells was measured by using in vivo fluorescence of chlorophyll a. These quick measurements mostly agreed with those of the growth rates. When the species composition of the mixed algal culture was investigated, large differences in sensitivities between the different species were found. Stimulation or inhibition were observed in the same sample for different species but also for the same species at different concentrations.