Algae Makes Wastewater Valuable

by Navid Moheimani and Parisa Bahri (Naked Scientists) ... Our team at Murdoch University Algae R&D Centre has developed a unique process that uses algae to treat effluent. The process involves first passing the effluent through an anaerobic digester, which converts the organic material in the waste into biogas (methane). This can be used to generate electricity. The remaining liquid and suspended material produced by the digester is then fed to our algae. This material is very high in ammonium, meaning it is toxic to most organisms, and only specific algae can grow under these conditions. As the algae multiply, consuming the organic material, nutrients and minerals, they also remove a significant amount of carbon dioxide. The result is algal biomass with a very high protein content, and clean water.

So far, we have successfully treated piggery effluent using this process. The biomass generated can be used as animal feed, fertiliser or an aquaculture feed. We have shown that the biomass can be safely used as a feed for juvenile marron and as a sustainable organic fertiliser. The biomass can also be digested by pigs. We've also started to investigate using our technique to clean up abattoir effluent, and further work with domestic and dairy effluents are also underway.

Integrating biology and engineering

This is a project requiring a very good understanding of biological and engineering systems and processes. While algal cultivation depends upon understanding the biology of algae, there are many aspects of engineering that also needs to be fully understood and integrated into the process. Our approach will only work if we successfully integrate the biology and engineering. READ MORE includes AUDIO