Treatment of Dairy Wastewater using Monoraphidium sp. KMC4 and Subsequent Thermochemical Conversion of the Biomass to Biofuels

Abstract

The depletion of fossil fuel reserves, rising environmental pollution, and accelerating climate change have driven the global search for clean and renewable energy alternatives. Bio-oil offers a promising substitute, and microalgae represent an encouraging third-generation feedstock capable of generating biofuel year-round. However, the high cost of microalgal biomass production limits commercial sustainability. Cultivating microalgae in nutrient-rich wastewater such as dairy wastewater enriched with nitrogen, phosphorus, and organic carbon can substantially reduce production costs while delivering bioremediation benefits, and mixotrophic growth further enhances biomass productivity compared with heterotrophic cultivation. This thesis proposes an integrated microalgae-based biorefinery for the concurrent treatment of simulated synthetic dairy wastewater and bio-oil production.