Bioremediation of wastewater: a microalgae-based approach

The need to strengthen the circular economy strategy to achieve sustainable development has encouraged the promotion of innovative strategies. The GRIP project, "Green processes for industrial productions and cost-effective effluents valorization", funded by Next Generation Europe, promotes concrete circular solutions in North-West Italy. The present study is part of the GRIP objective of preserving natural resources and reducing waste, with the aim of valorizing and reusing liquid waste, and it is performed under international Italian-French co-supervision. The specific objective of the present study is to evaluate the bioremediation potential of several microalgae for wastewater treatment, based on laboratory-scale bioremediation strategies. First, different wastewaters are tested as culture media for microalgae. The efficacy of microalgae to remove nutrients and pollutants from wastewater is then evaluated. Bioremediation tests are performed in a Multi-Cultivator system (PSI, Czech Republic) under controlled light, temperature, and aeration conditions. The present study will have several outputs: first, the selection of the most efficient microalgae for the bioremediation of a specific liquid waste; of no less importance, a scale-up of the process will provide treated water and microalgae biomass, both reusable for further applications. Overall, the project will implement a sustainable and circular approach to water resource management.