Comparison of the photoautotrophic growth regimens of chlorella sorokiniana in a photobioreactor for enhanced biomass productivity

Abstract

© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. Microalgae have a wide industrial potential because of their high metabolic diversity and plasticity. Selection of optimal cultivation methods is important to optimize multi‐purpose microalgal biotechnologies. In this research, Chlorella sorokiniana AM‐02 that was isolated from a freshwater lake was cultured under various high photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) conditions and CO2 gas levels in standard Bold’s basal medium (BBM). Furthermore, a wide range of nitrate levels (180–1440 mg L−1) was tested on the growth of C. sorokiniana. Microalgae growth, pigment concentration, medium pH, exit gas composition, as well as nitrate, phosphate, and sulfate levels were measured during an experimental period. The preferred high PPFD and optimal CO2 levels were found to be 1000–1400 μmol photons m−2 s−1 and 0.5–2.0% (v/v), respectively. The addition of nitrate ions (up to 1440 mg L−1) to the standard growth medium increased final optical density (OD750), cell count, pigment concentration, and total biomass yield but decreased the initial growth rate at high nitrate levels. Our findings can serve as the basis for a robust photoautotrophic cultivation system to maximize the productivity of large‐scale microalgal cultures.