Tertiary treatment of wastewater with Phormidium bohneri (Schmidle) under various light and temperature conditions

• Published in: Water research (Oxford) Vol. 27; no. 1; pp. 153 - 159
• Main Authors: Talbot, P., de la Noüe, J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 1993; Elsevier Science
• Subjects: Ammonia; Applied sciences; carbohydrate; Exact sciences and technology; light; Other wastewaters; Phormidium bohneri; phosphate; Pollution; protein; removal; temperature; wastewater treatment; Wastewaters; Water treatment and pollution; Phormidium bohneri; light; wastewater treatment; protein; temperature; ammonia; phosphate; removal; carbohydrate; Domestic waste water; Luminous intensity; Temperature; Phormidium; Medium effect; Cyanobacteria; Bacteria; Tertiary purification; Waste water purification; Biological purification
• ISSN: 0043-1354; 1879-2448
• DOI: 10.1016/0043-1354(93)90206-W

Experiments were carried out on secondary effluents under different conditions of light and temperature with the aim of evaluating the potential and limits of the epilithic filamentous cyanobacterium Phormidium bohneri (Schmidle) for biotreatment of domestic wastewaters. Aerated cultures were incubated at 10 and 30°C in a chamber fitted with a photic gradient plate receiving 120 and 720 μE/m 2s. Results indicate that the strain used prefers elevated temperatures, and can withstand considerable variation in light intensity. Response at 30°C with regard to NH 3 and PO 4 −3 removal agrees with that reported for unicellular chlorophytes. A complete exhaustion of these nutrients was obtained after 3 and 5 days, respectively. It appears that NH 3 stripping contributed substantially (38–100%) to the overall NH 3 removal efficiency observed in the system. In addition, the protein and carbohydrate content of the biomass produced suggests potential feedstock use.