Winter-time CO2 addition in high rate algal mesocosms for enhanced microalgal performance

•Up to 5% CO2 added in winter-time increased microalgal biomass and biovolume.•Microalgal light absorption efficiency increased with CO2 addition.•Percentage of CO2 added determined microalgal community composition.•10% CO2 addition increased photosynthesis but not biomass production.

Carbon limitation in domestic wastewater high rate algal ponds is thought to constrain microalgal photo-physiology and productivity and CO2 augmentation is often used to overcome this limitation in summer. However, the implications of carbon limitation during winter are poorly understood. This paper investigates the effects of 0.5%, 2%, 5% and 10% CO2 addition on the winter-time performance of wastewater microalgae in high rate algal mesocosms. Performance was measured in terms of light absorption, photosynthetic efficiency, biomass production and nutrient removal rates, along with community composition. Varying percentage CO2 addition and associated change in culture pH resulted in 3 distinct microalgal communities. Light absorption by the microalgae increased by up to 144% with CO2 addition, while a reduction in the package effect meant that there was less internal self-shading thereby increasing the efficiency of light absorption. Carbon augmentation increased the maximum rate of photosynthesis by up to 172%, which led to increased microalgal biovolume by up to 181% and an increase in total organic biomass for all treatments except 10% CO2. While 10% CO2 improved light absorption and photosynthesis this did not translate to enhanced microalgal productivity. Increased microalgal productivity with CO2 addition did not result in increased dissolved nutrient (nitrogen and phosphorus) removal. This experiment demonstrated that winter-time carbon augmentation up to 5% CO2 improved microalgal light absorption and utilisation, which ultimately increased microalgal biomass and is likely to enhance total annual microalgal areal productivity in HRAPs.

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