Skip to main content
Articles | Sustainable Environmental Insight | Volume 1 - Issue 2 - 2024 | 58‒69 | https://doi.org/10.53623/sein.v1i2.425
© 2024 by the author(s), and is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) License Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) License

Preliminary Investigation of Wastewater Phycoremediation and Biomass Productivity using Locally Isolated Green Microalgae from Ipoh, Malaysia

Author(s): Pravin Muniandy 1 , Leong Kong Yong 2 , Siti Nor Aishah Mohd Salleh 1 , Mirshayinee Muniandy 1 , Chi Hien Lee 1
Author(s) information:
1 School of Applied Sciences (SAS), Faculty of Integrated Life Sciences, Quest International University, Malaysia.
2 Department of Civil and Construction Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Science, Curtin University Malaysia.

Corresponding author

Sustainable Environmental Insight

Sustainable Environmental Insight

Volume 1 - Issue 2 - 2024

 About the journal
Submit your article

This study investigated the potential of microalgae, sourced from a pond in Gunung Lang, Ipoh, Malaysia, for the phycoremediation of domestic wastewater. Under laboratory conditions, identified and confirmed microalgae species were introduced to wastewater samples to assess their capacity for removing Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD), nitrogen, phosphorus, and heavy metals such as chromium and zinc. The study also examined the relationship between algae growth rates and nutrient absorption, alongside a detailed analysis of wastewater to determine the extent of pollutant reduction. Initial analyses revealed that the COD levels of the domestic wastewater stood at 158 mg/l, failing to meet the Effluent Standard requirements as per the Malaysia Environmental Quality (Industrial Effluents) Regulations 2009. nitrogen levels were measured at 11.16 mg/l, phosphorus at 5.56 mg/l, chromium at 1.53 mg/l, and zinc at 0.53 mg/l under the heavy metal category. The study demonstrates that phycoremediation significantly reduces pollutants and nutrients in wastewater samples. Remarkably, zinc removal achieved a 100% success rate, while the lowest pollutant removal was observed for COD at the 104 cell concentration in 100% wastewater concentration samples. The outcomes highlighted the efficacy of using microalgae for wastewater treatment, showing considerable promise in reducing environmental pollutants.

Read Full-Text
Previous article
Next article

Khan, M.N.; Mohammad, F. (2014). Eutrophication: challenges and solutions. In Eutrophication: Causes, Consequences and Control, Vol. 2; Ansari, A., Gill, S., Eds.; Springer: Dordrecht, Netherlands, pp. 1‒15. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-7814-6_1.

Bhateria, R.; Jain, D. (2016). Water quality assessment of lake water: a review. Sustainable Water Resources Management, 2, 161‒173. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40899-015-0014-7.

Nikuze, M.J.;Niyomukiza, J.B., Nshimiyimana, A.; Kwizera, J.P. (2020). Assessment of the efficiency of the wastewater treatment plant: a case of Gacuriro Vision City. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 448, 012046. http://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/448/1/012046.

Silva, J.A. (2023). Wastewater treatment and reuse for sustainable water resources management: a systematic literature review. Sustainability, 15, 10940. https://doi.org/10.3390/su151410940.

Gani, P.; Sunar, N.M.; Matias-Peralta, H.; Parjo, U.K.; Razak, A.R.A. (2015). Phycoremediation of wastewaters and potential hydrocarbon from microalgae: a review. Advances in Environmental Biology, 9, 1‒9.

Al-Jabri, H.; Das, P.; Khan, S.; Thaher, M.; AbdulQuadir, M. (2020). Treatment of wastewaters by microalgae and the potential applications of the produced biomass—A review. Water, 13, 27. https://doi.org/10.3390/w13010027.

Abdelfattah, A.; Ali, S.S.; Ramadan, H.; El-Aswar, E.I.; Eltawab, R.; Ho, S.H., Sun, J. (2023). Microalgae-based wastewater treatment: Mechanisms, challenges, recent advances, and future prospects. Environmental Science and Ecotechnology, 13, 100205. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ese.2022.100205.

Azimi, A.; Azari, A.; Rezakazemi, M.; Ansarpour, M. (2017). Removal of heavy metals from industrial wastewaters: a review. ChemBioEng Reviews, 4, 37‒59. https://doi.org/10.1002/cben.201600010.

Hanum, F.; Yuan, L.C.; Kamahara, H.; Aziz, H.A.; Atsuta, Y.; Yamada, T.; Daimon, H. (2019). Treatment of sewage sludge using anaerobic digestion in Malaysia: Current state and challenges. Frontiers in Energy Research, 7, 19. http://doi.org/10.3389/fenrg.2019.00019.

Gani, P.; Muniandy, M.; Hua, A.K. (2024). Preliminary characterisation of physicochemical and heavy metals contents of algal blooms lake water. AIP Conference Proceedings, 2934, 030003. https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0180588.

Parvin, M.; Zannat, M.N.; Habib, M.A.B. (2007). Two important techniques for isolation of microalgae. Asian Fisheries Science, 20, 117‒124.

Silva, J.; Alves, C.; Pinteus, S.; Reboleira, J.; Pedrosa, R.; Bernardino, S. (2019). Chlorella. In Nonvitamin and nonmineral nutritional supplements. Academic Press: Cambridge, USA; pp. 187‒193.

Aniyikaiye, T.E.; Oluseyi, T.; Odiyo, J.O.; Edokpayi, J.N. (2019). Physico-chemical analysis of wastewater discharge from selected paint industries in Lagos, Nigeria. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16, 1235. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16071235.

Khan, M.I.; Shin, J.H.; Kim, J.D. (2018). The promising future of microalgae: current status, challenges, and optimization of a sustainable and renewable industry for biofuels, feed, and other products. Microbial Cell Factories, 17, 1‒21. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12934-018-0879-x.

Kazbar, A.; Cogne, G.; Urbain, B.; Marec, H.; Le-Gouic, B.; Tallec, J.; Pruvost, J. (2019). Effect of dissolved oxygen concentration on microalgal culture in photobioreactors. Algal Research, 39, 101432. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.algal.2019.101432.

Yaakob, M.A.; Mohamed, R.M.S.R.; Al-Gheethi, A.; Aswathnarayana Gokare, R.; Ambati, R.R. (2021). Influence of nitrogen and phosphorus on microalgal growth, biomass, lipid, and fatty acid production: an overview. Cells, 10, 393. https://doi.org/10.3390/cells10020393.

Rice, E.W.; Bridgewater, L. (2012). Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater, Vol. 10. American Public Health Association: Washington DC, USA.

Read Full-Text
About this article

SUBMITTED: 26 March 2024
ACCEPTED: 21 May 2024
PUBLISHED: 8 August 2024
SUBMITTED to ACCEPTED: 56 days
DOI: https://doi.org/10.53623/sein.v1i2.425

Cite this article
Muniandy, P. ., Yong, L. K., Mohd Salleh, S. N. A. ., Muniandy, M. ., & Lee, C. H. . (2024). Preliminary Investigation of Wastewater Phycoremediation and Biomass Productivity using Locally Isolated Green Microalgae from Ipoh, Malaysia. Sustainable Environmental Insight, 1(2), 58‒69. https://doi.org/10.53623/sein.v1i2.425
Keywords
Green Microalgae Wastewater Phycoremediation Nutrients Heavy Metals
Accessed
131
Citations
0
Share this article