A simple model for algae-bacteria interaction in photo-bioreactors

This work presents a simple model to describe the consortia of algae-bacteria in a photo-bioreactor. The model is inspired by the Activated Sludge Model (ASM) structure, which includes different process rates and stoichiometric parameters. The model comprises two main biomass populations (algae and bacteria), two dissolved substrates (ammonium and nitrate) and two dissolved gases (oxygen and carbon dioxide) in the reactor. The model was calibrated with data from batch experiments performed in two lab-scale photo-bioreactors. A sensitivity analysis was done to identify the parameters to be considered for the model calibration. Results indicate that the maximum algae and bacteria growth rate, bacteria growth yield and half-saturation constant for carbon were the most sensitive parameters. Moreover, the comparison between the experiments and the model shows good agreement in terms of predicting the ammonium, nitrate and oxygen concentrations in the photo-bioreactor.