Processes for the valorization of microalgal biomass cultivated in piggery wastewater

Abstract

Piggery wastewater generation has become an environmental problem which must be solved by managing the residue through appropriate treatment. One promising technology is the use of photobioreactors where microalgae and bacteria act symbiotically to remove nutrients, which allows to reduce costs in wastewater treatment and in microalgae production by using the wastewater as culture media. In this treatment process, a valuable biomass is generated that can be used to produce several components and bioproducts. However, most of the algal components such as proteins and carbohydrates are found within a cell wall that should be disrupted to extract them by trying to cause low degradation of the solubilized components and considering the presence of pollutants. So, this thesis focusses on the valorization of the algal biomass grown on piggery wastewater by different technologies. Likewise, the economic and environmental viability of some proposed valorization processes was studied.