Bioelectrogenesis with microbial fuel cells (MFCs) using the microalga Chlorella vulgaris and bacterial communities

Background: Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) technology is used in various applications such as wastewater treatment with the production of electrical energy. The objective of this study was to estimate the biodepuration of oils and fats, the elimination of blue dye brl and bioelectro-characterization in MFCs with Chlorella vulgaris and bacterial community. Results: The operation of MFCs at 32 d showed an increase in bioelectrogenic activity (from 23.17 to 327.67 mW/m2 ) and in the potential (from 200 to 954 mV), with biodepuration of fats and oils (95%) in the microalgal cathode, and a removal of the chemical oxygen demand COD (anode, 71%, cathode, 78.6%) and the blue dye brl (73%) at the anode, here biofilms were formed by the bacterial community consisting of Actinobacteria and Deltaproteobacteria. Conclusions: These findings suggest that MFCs with C. vulgaris and bacterial community have a simultaneous efficiency in the production of bioelectricity and bioremediation processes, becoming an important source of bioenergy in the future.

Cultivo de Arthrospira platensis (Spirulina) en fotobiorreactor tubular doblemente curvado a condiciones ambientales en el sur del Perú / Cultivation of Arthrospira platensis (Spirulina) in curved doubly tubular photobioreactor to environmental conditions in the South of the Peru

El presente trabajo investigó el cultivo de la microalga Arthrospira platensis (Spirulina) en valores de productividad cultivado en fotobiorreactor tubular doblemente curvado a condiciones ambientales con el fin de aprovechar la alta radiación solar de la región Arequipa en el sur de Perú (16°24´50´´ LS; 71°32´02´´ LO; 2344 msnm). El fotobiorreactor fue construido con un tubo transparente de policloruro de vinilo (PVC). La productividad del cultivo fue de 13.9 g/m² en 14 días ó 1 g/m²/día y una concentración de clorofila - "a" de 0.00785 mg/L con una máxima radiación de 1179 W/m², y una iluminación de 121500 lux, convirtiendo sus filamentos helicoidales a morfologías anormales, tales como formas irregulares curvas e incluso lineales con fragmentaciones, demostrando que el cultivo se vio afectado por la alta radiación y las variaciones de temperaturas de Arequipa.

The present work investigated the cultivation of microalgae Arthrospira platensis (Spirulina) in productivity values cultivated in doubly curved tubular photobioreactor to environmental conditions in order to take advantage of the high solar radiation of the Arequipa region in southern Peru (16°24´50´´ LS; 71°32´02´´LW; 2344 msnm.). The photobioreactor was built with a transparent tube of polyvinyl chloride (PVC). The productivity of the crop was 13.9 g/m² in 14 days or 1 g/m²/day and a concentration of chlorophyll - "a" 0.00785 mg/L with a maximum radiation of 1179 W/m², and a 121500 lux illumination, making its helical filaments abnormal morphologies, such as curves and linear even irregular shapes with fragmentation, demonstrating that the crop was affected by high radiation and variations in temperatures of Arequipa.