Kristin Pirwitz

Comparison of flocculation methods for harvesting Dunaliella

Low cell concentrations of Dunaliella salina in production scale cultivations require high energy input for biomass harvesting. Flocculation is a potential preconcentration method to lower the dewatering costs for the β-carotene production. In the present study, optimal flocculant dosages were determined for several metal salts, NaOH, Ca(OH)2 and Al-electrolysis. Beside harvesting efficiency ηH and concentration factor CF, also the recyclability of the separated medium as well as the influence of the cell physiology on the harvesting performance were analyzed for selected flocculants. To assess the possible recycle of non-sedimented cells for the inoculation of new cultivations, cell vitality and the photosynthetic activity of D. salina were analyzed after the flocculation. As a result, the flocculation with NaOH led to a clear inhibition of both, the algal growth on recycled medium and the algal photosynthetic activity. The addition of FeCl3 seems most promising to flocculate D. salina.

Valorization of the aqueous phase obtained from hydrothermally treated Dunaliella salina remnant biomass.

Up to 90% of Dunaliella salina biomass remains unused after extraction of the main product β-carotene. The potential of mild hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) to exploit this biomass as a source of valuable by-products was assessed. The results indicate that 80% of the remnant was converted into glucose by mild HTL (100°C, 0min). The recovered glucose was successfully used as a carbon source to cultivate biotechnologically relevant microorganisms, namely Chlorella vulgaris, Escherichia coli and Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Furthermore, the analysis of energy demand and operating costs confirms the beneficial effect of mild liquefaction on the overall process economics of algal β-carotene production.