AMB Volume 42, Issue 1, 2026 Pages 135-143 https://doi.org/10.59393/amb26420114
Sustainable Algae Cultivation – Maximizing Biomass Yield, Minimizing Environmental Footprint
Vasileva I.A., Gigova L.G., Iliev I.I., Alexandrov S., Ivanova J.G.
Addressing the challenge of greenhouse gas emissions involves exploring innovative approaches, and a promising one is the development of technologies for cultivating microalgae without the need for extra carbon dioxide supplementation. The goal of the current study was to create a suitable nutrient medium for growing Scenedesmus obliquus BGP using atmospheric air, thus ensuring stable growth of the culture, a balanced biomass composition, and mitigation of atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. Scenedesmus cultures grown in the modified medium were harvested for analysis during mid-exponential (96 h) and/or early stationary (264 h) growth phase. Cell morphology, biomass accumulation, its biochemical composition, and the activity of the key antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase and catalase of S. obliquus BGP were assessed, comparing scenarios with and without additional carbon dioxide supply. The maximum yield of biomass and its biochemical composition were comparable when using the medium with and without carbon dioxide supplementation, an important result in microalgal cultivation, showing that high yields can be achieved without the supplemental CO2 generally considered essential for industrial cultivation. Furthermore, the content of unsaturated fatty acids in the biomass of microalgae cultivated using atmospheric air increased from 11.1% to 14.5%. The results obtained demonstrate the potential of S. obliquus BGP, cultivated at ambient atmospheric carbon dioxide levels, for sustainable production of useful biomass for future biotechnological applications, as a costsaving, loweremission alternative for largescale cultivation systems.
Keywords: CO2 mitigation, Scenedesmus obliquus, biomass yield, polyunsaturated fatty acids, SOD, CAT
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