Mixotrophic cultivation of Nephroselmis sp. using industrial wastewater for enhanced microalgal biomass production

• Growth of Nephroselmis sp. was enhanced with LCD wastewater.
• LCD wastewater improved the lipid/carbohydrate productivity of Nephroselmis sp.
• Palmitic and oleic acid content was increased up to 10 and 17% with LCD wastewater.
• A dual strategy for wastewater reuse and microalgal biomass production.

Effect of liquid crystal display (LCD) wastewater on the biomass production and biochemical composition of a green microalga Nephroselmis sp. cultivated in Bold’s Basal Medium (BBM) was investigated. Different dilutions (1/250-1/10,000) of LCD wastewater with BBM were tested in the presence of 5% flue gas CO2. Nephroselmis sp. showed the highest growth (0.37 g L−1), lipid productivity (14.2 mg L−1 day−1), carbohydrate productivity (12.5 mg L−1 day−1), β-carotene + lutein productivity (74.2 μg L−1 day−1) and nutrient removal (35.0 mg TN L−1 and 11.6 mg TP L−1) with 1/1000 diluted LCD wastewater after 6 days of cultivation. Cultivation with LCD wastewater increased the microalgal saturated and monounsaturated fatty acid contents up to 9 and 24%, respectively. Application of LCD wastewater improved the growth, lipid/carbohydrate/carotenoids productivity and nutrient removal efficiency of Nephroselmis sp., which can be a cost effective strategy for microalgal biomass production.