E2.02A Abeysiriwardana 2018 ReNUWIt Annual Meeting Poster

Ability of Galdieria Sulphuraria, an acidophilic, thermotolerant and mixotrophic algae specie, in removing ammoniacal nitrogen, phosphorus and organic carbon from primary- settled wastewater was demonstrated under fed-batch operation. Photosynthetically Oxygenated Waste to Energy Recovery (POWER) system utilizing G. Sulphuraria was engineered to treat primary-settled wastewater and to recover energy and nutrients. Long term fed-batch operation of the reactor confirmed the ability of the alga to grow well in primary-settled wastewater and to achieve stipulated discharge standards for ammoniacal nitrogen, phosphate, and organic carbon, in a cycle time of 3 days. Additionally, the POWER system achieved effective removal of cations such as Al, Fe, Mn, Ca, Mg and Cu.
Due to the inability of G. Sulphuraria to tolerate low temperatures, the system was operated with a polyculture during winter. Results demonstrated the ability of the polyculture in removing ammoniacal nitrogen (84%); phosphate (52%); and organic carbon (57%) in fed-batch mode in a cycle time of 3 days.